Why the San Antonio Spurs Must Rest Tim Duncan Until Playoff Time

You may very well have had a better shot at spotting Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster than finding Tim Duncan on a basketball court this week.

In San Antonio's back-to-back losses against the Sacramento Kings and Houston Rockets, Duncan was missing in action over the course of two very winnable games. Spurs' coach Gregg Popovich stubbornly held Duncan to under 25 minutes against Sacramento, including just a handful of seconds in the fourth quarter.

Such measures are commonplace in blowouts, but the Spurs held a slim lead in the waning minutes of this contest.

By the time the buzzer sounded, that lead had become a two-point deficit as the inexperienced Kings squeaked out an 88-86 victory that made the heart of Texas skip a beat.

One night later, San Antonio played its fourth game in five nights with Duncan amassing a grand total of zero minutes. This time, the short-handed Spurs lost by three to Houston.

Like it or not, Spurs' faithful should get used to their franchise icon's sporadic play. In the 16 games he has played in, Duncan is averaging less than 27 minutes per game (yet another minute down from the paltry 28.4 he mustered in 2010-2011).

To be sure, Duncan's increased R&R is not without rationale.

At first glance, the trend appears symptomatic of a marked decline in Duncan's ability and endurance. However, as some noticed halfway through last season, the shift in Duncan's minutes is rather intended to keep him fresh for the NBA Playoffs (not that it showed much against Memphis in 2011).

Gregg Popovich has long understood that surviving the grind of an NBA season is more art than it is science. In a shortened schedule that's taken its toll on the legs of young and old players alike, keeping Duncan fresh has never been more crucial.

Even with Timmy working part time, San Antonio should remain in the playoff hunt. The team is too deep and well coached to slip in what has proven thus far to be a pretty wide-open Western Conference.

And, despite its recent missteps against the middling Kings and Rockets, San Antonio remains more than capable of beating good teams. Without Ginobili, the Spurs have bested the likes of Portland, Denver and Orlando (all teams primed to finish their seasons over .600).

While the Spurs run the very real risk of limping into the playoffs as a low seed, that seeding won't count for much if Tim Duncan isn't at 100 percent.

Last year's first-round disappointment was an all-too vivid illustration of Duncan's value. Should San Antonio once again face a first-rate front line against a team like the Grizzlies, Lakers or Blazers, it will need the Big Fundamental to be bigger than ever.

And yet, Duncan's limited minutes are perhaps most important for understudy Tiago Splitter and sidekick DeJuan Blair. Without Duncan to rely upon down the stretch, both must step up in the post and grow from complementary pieces into featured regulars.

Splitter did just that in the otherwise unfortunate loss to the Rockets, scoring a career-high 25 points on 11-of-13 shooting (with 10 rebounds to boot).

If San Antonio's young front line is to be counted on in the postseason, they must first become the kind of options who no longer depend on Duncan.

Timmy will surely appreciate the rest, but the greatest benefactors come playoff time may be the teammates increasingly thrown into the fire during tight fourth quarters.

The Duncan-less losses may be frustrating now, and one can't be blamed for questioning whether or not Pop really knows best.

But, this much is certain: a successful playoff run would have more than a few of those doubting fans owing Coach Popovich an apology. I know I will.