Two-time NBA champ says the San Antonio Spurs will need to “get lucky” if they want to repeat.
Speaking to MVPÂ in London, the 6′ 10″ sharp-shooter said “there’s a lot of luck involved. You’ve got to stay healthy, avoid injury – especially being in the Western Conference…there are so many great teams that you’ve got to be playing your best basketball come play-offs time.
“If we can do that, we’ll have a good chance. But I think everybody on our team recognises how difficult it is to win a championship, and respects the process.”
The 34-year-old is the first to admit that the Spurs’ style of play is not the most exciting: “We are very ‘not flashy’,” he says, “We’re not grabbing all the highlights at the end of the night”.
But he thinks it’s a winning formula.
“Rather than just isolating guys to go one-on-one, we’re five guys working together on the court to get the best shot possible, working collectively as a group. We showed that kind of basketball can win a championship – we’ll see if other people can start emulating it.”
Indeed, it looks like other teams might already be looking to copy the Spurs’ more European style of play – notably, the Cleveland Cavaliers, who’ve brought in David Blatt as their head coach, who’s spent his entire career coaching in Europe. Bonner says the NBA being influenced by other styles of play in inevitable as the world becomes more connected.
“Look at the globalisation of our planet – the internet, everyone being connected. Well, basketball is like that. It’s a global sport. It’s getting more and more popular all over the world, and the NBA is at the forefront of that. You look at how many international players are in our league, and it’s just going to spread – from the players to the coaches. And eventually we’ll just combine the two different styles.”
The most valuable international player on the Spurs’ squad is the Virgin Islands’ Tim Duncan. And Bonner is still in awe of The Big Fundamental’s abilities.
“I think he’s been the best power forward ever,” he says “I just know I consider myself incredibly lucky to be around him the last 8 years, going into my 9th year, and just witness his greatness.”
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