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5 Thoughts For Tonight

Just a note: This will be Spurs and basketball related, because--aside from the continued good health of a struggling friend, and the Good News of Christ--today wasn't all that great for the world, though I have no personal complaints. Without further ado:

5. Dude, the Cleveland Cavaliers are legit. It's time to face up to the fact that LeBron James makes any team he is on into an acute threat for the NBA championship. And not because he does it all; he facilitates the flourishing of his teammates' talents. I am neither pro or anti-LeBron; I just know what I see. "King James" is not only arguably the best player in the game, he's one of the best ever. At 29.

4. I grant you that I am an avowed fan of the San Antonio Spurs. Because of this, you are free to dismiss what I will say. The Spurs are the most complete team I have ever seen. There is scarcely a meaningful distinction between a starter and a bench player on the Spurs. It's not an admirable goal, a mirage cultivated to create sympathy. They really play that way, and it breeds authentic sympathy and admiration among friends, and grudging respect among foes.

3. Tim Duncan: 19 points, 10 rebounds. Double digits in 2 categories, again. He's 38. He should be doing farewell tours, not crushing dreams. If they win again this year, the man deserves to be in the "Jordan conversation" as the best ever at any position. Yes, I said it, and I won't take it back.

2. Duncan, revisited: When Gregg Popovich, the league's best coach this side of Phil Jackson and the definition of "stern" and "dispassionate," says plainly, "I feel like we all work for Timmy," maybe we have underrated this guy the whole time. Not that he minds.

1. Hilarious. But that's Duncan. Even his hotshot nickname ("The Big Fundamental") sounds like a coach's pregame speech. This dude is one of the best ever, and he acts like the bench kid who slaps the floor.
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