San Antonio Spurs: West No. 1 Seed in Sight

The San Antonio Spurs are up to their old tricks again.

Somehow, this team manages to be among the very best in the league year in and year out. Last year, the Spurs finished with a league-best record of 50-16. The Chicago Bulls were the only team that matched them. Year before that, they finished second overall with a record of 61-21. In fact, the Spurs have not missed the playoffs in 15 years. That is quite the run, and the way things are going this year, it looks like the run will continue.

Currently, the Spurs sit at 44-13. This is the best record in the league. The closest team to them is the Oklahoma City Thunder, at 40-15. Should the Spurs win the rest of their games this season, they will finish with a record of 69-13—good for a tie of the second best record in NBA History.

For those of you who forgot, the Spurs made some noise last year when they went on a 20-game win streak that continued through the playoffs and into the Western Conference finals. Unfortunately, they were shocked by the Oklahoma City Thunder at that point, but despite that, this team knows how to finish strong. The remainder of this season presents a very favorable schedule for the Spurs.

Only eight of their 25 remaining games will be played on the road.

As we approach playoff season, it seems very unlikely that the Spurs will lose their top-seed position. They have a fairly-large lead over the Thunder as it is, and they should do nothing but win with this ultra-favorable, end-of-year schedule. On top of that, Tony Parker is playing the best ball of his life.

No team has shown that they can stop him thus far.

Tim Duncan currently has four championships under his belt. The only other player who can contend with Duncan's career numbers in this era is Kobe Bryant. Should Duncan win this fifth championship, it may become clearer which of these two is the greatest player of their era. 

Best Tickets has Spurs tickets for as little as $9, and StubHub has them for a little more than $16. Those numbers are much friendlier than what you'll see for other teams around the league. Spurs fans will surely take advantage of these low ticket prices and support their team on the way to what would be a legacy-sealing championship.