SAN ANTONIO SPURS FRANCHISE HISTORY
Previous Franchise Names: Texas Chaparrals, Dallas Chaparrals
Principal Owner: Peter Holt
General Manager: R.C. Buford
Head Coach: Gregg Popovich
Best Season: 2005-06 (63-19, .768)
Playoff Appearances: 44
NBA Championships: 5 (1998-99, 2002-03, 2004-05, 2006-07, 2013-14)
SAN ANTONIO, UNITED STATES: David Robinson (L) and Tim Duncan (R) of the San Antonio Spurs set their defense against the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas 04 February 2002. AFP PHOTO/Paul BUCK (Photo credit should read PAUL BUCK/AFP/Getty Images)
With five NBA championships since 1999, the San Antonio Spurs are the lone former ABA franchise to win an NBA title.
The club began as the Dallas Chaparrals of the ABA in its inaugural 1967-68 season and, after spending the 1970-71 season wandering around the Lone Star State as the Texas Chaparrals, the team anchored itself in Dallas the following year.
In 1973, the franchise moved south to San Antonio and became an instant hit both on the court and at the box office and in just three years had gained sufficient staying power to become a surprise inclusion in the 1976 merger of the rival leagues.
San Antonio enjoyed regular season success aplenty in the 1970s and early 1980s behind stars such as George Gervin, Larry Kenon, James Silas and Artis Gilmore, but ran into the Washington Bullets in the Eastern Conference in the 1970s and the Los Angeles Lakers in the early ‘80s out West.
The Spurs bottomed out in the middle of the 1980s and drafted Navy star David Robinson first overall in 1987, opting to wait two years for him to fulfill his military obligation.
Robinson’s arrival launched a new era of success for the Spurs, save for a 20-win season in 1996-97 when Robinson was out with a back injury most of the year.
That led, however, to the drafting of franchise icon Tim Duncan with the first pick in 1997 and San Antonio hasn’t missed the postseason since.
The Spurs won titles in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2014 and lost in the 2013 Finals in a seven-game thriller to the Miami Heat.
Coach Gregg Popovich, who served as the Spurs general manager from May 1994 through July 2002, took over as head coach 18 games into the disastrous 1996-97 season and has gone 1,078-480 in the regular season and 152-94 in the playoffs since.
San Antonio Spurs Career Leaders (as of 3/9/2016)
- Games, Tim Duncan, 1379
- Points, Tim Duncan, 26382
- Rebounds, Tim Duncan, 15001
- Assists, Tony Parker, 6277
- Steals, David Robinson, 1388
- Blocks, Tim Duncan, 3004
LANDOVER, MD – CIRCA 1982: George Gervin #44 of the San Antonio Spurs goes up to jam the ball against the Washington Bullets during an NBA basketball game circa 1982 at the Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland. Gervin played for the Spurs from 1974-85. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
San Antonio Spurs Retired Numbers
- 00, Johnny Moore
- 6, Avery Johnson
- 12, Bruce Bowen
- 13, James Silas
- 32, Sean Elliot
- 44, George Gervin
- 50, David Robinson
San Antonio Spurs Official Links
Official Team Site: nba.com/spurs
Official Twitter Handle: @spurs
Official Facebook Page: San Antonio Spurs
Official Instagram Page: San Antonio Spurs
Official Arena Page: AT&T Center
San Antonio Spurs Beat Writers
Jeff McDonald, San Antonio Express-News, @jmcdonald_saen
Mike Monroe, San Antonio Express-News, @monroe_sa
Dan McCarney, San Antonio Express-News, @danmccarneysaen
Michael Wright, ESPN, @mikecwright
Related San Antonio Spurs Blogs and Links
San Antonio Spurs Logo History, courtesy of Chris Creamer’s Sportslogos.net
Salary Page: San Antonio Spurs Salaries at Spotrac
FanSided San Antonio Spurs: Air Alamo
SB Nation San Antonio Spurs: Pounding The Rock
ESPN TrueHoop San Antonio Spurs: 48 Minutes of Hell
HoopsHabit San Antonio Spurs Archive: San Antonio Spurs
Bleacher Report San Antonio Spurs Team Stream: San Antonio Spurs
RealGM San Antonio Spurs Page: San Antonio Spurs
Stats and retired number information courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com
