A Tribute to Manu Ginobili, My Most Favorite Spur Ever

Manu Ginobili is my all-time favorite Spur.  And after 16 years in the NBA – playing for the San Antonio Spurs the entire time – the now 41-year-old has decided to retire.  He’s had a terrific career.  Four championships.  Two All-Star selections.  Two All-NBA Third Team selections.  A Sixth Man of the Year award.  Without the proper context, his accolades appear relatively unremarkable, especially when compared to what his comrade-in-arms Tim Duncan had earned.  Nevertheless, I strongly believe he deserves to get into the Hall of Fame.

His performance during the 2004 Olympics should be enough to make his Hall of Fame case.  Not only did he lead the Argentine national basketball team to the gold medal, but he also led them in pulling off one of the greatest upsets in sports history by knocking out Tim Duncan’s Team USA in the semis.  Sure, the Americans had struggled in that tournament.  But with MVPs Duncan and Allen Iverson at the helm, and up-and-coming young stars LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and Carmelo Anthony part of the roster, Team USA were still the favorites.  However, they had no answer for Ginobili in that game, as he torched them for 29 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the field, of which 4-of-6 came from behind the arc (to be fair, Ginobili’s teammates were great, too).

Prior to that, I had already been enjoying Manu’s game in his first two seasons in the NBA.  I was already expecting greatness from him.  In fact, before the 2004-05 NBA season started, my high school mates and I decided to bet on our predictions regarding how the season’s awards would turn out, and my pick for MVP – even though I’m a huge Kobe fan – was Ginobili.  And, at that time, it seemed like his Olympic triumph only validated my hunch that he was on his way to becoming an MVP.

Unfortunately, my prediction was way off.  Manu didn’t win the regular-season MVP that year (Steve Nash did).  And neither did he ever get to win any kind of MVP in the following years (I remember getting extremely annoyed when Duncan won the 2005 Finals MVP because I thought Ginobili deserved it more).  I guess it simply came with the territory of playing for the Spurs; he never got to be the “man.”  For the kind of culture that Coach Pop established for the team had not provided Ginobili with the opportunity to be the “man.”  And if ever the role of the “man” was needed back then, it was Duncan’s to fill.

However, Manu wasn’t really bothered by such things.  He never let his ego get the better of him.  Rather, he was selfless and professional.  Personal numbers and awards never appealed to him.  He just focused on winning.  If what was needed to achieve that was to take a back seat, then so be it.  He delivered whatever roles were required of him – even that of coming off the bench – and carried them out excellently.

But for those who closely observed him, there was always the lingering feeling that he could have had earned for himself larger personal glories if he had had experienced having a team built around him.  In addition, his career would have likely thrived more if he had had his peak at this era.  No disrespect whatsoever, but looking at today’s NBA, a Ginobili may prove to be a more valuable piece than a Duncan.

Nevertheless, though playing within the constraints of the Spurs’ strict, muted system may have prevented him from unleashing the full might of what he could do, Manu nonetheless managed to showcase his dazzling gifts.   Thus, he may never have had the honor of being the Spurs’ MVP at any point of his career, but for most of his years in the team, he was definitely the Spurs’ “MWP” – the Must-Watch Player.  Not Duncan.  Not Tony Parker.  Not Kawhi Leonard for some time.  Manu Ginobili was the worthwhile spectacle.  Even during those years in which the Spurs had earned the reputation of being “boring” (the 2014 incarnation was anything but), no one could consider him as such.  He was constantly fun to watch.

He was a sly, beguiling, all-around basketball wizard.  And by being so, not only was he entertaining, but most importantly, he was capable of contributing to his team and beating his opponents in a variety of ways.  He could shoot three-pointers.  He could attack the basket with fierceness and grace (popularizing the Eurostep in the process).  He could make plays for teammates.  He could finish at the rim with a dunk, or could contort his body upon contact and toss a circus shot.  He could pester with his defense.  He could be relied on in the clutch (even when he was already past his prime).

But, for me, there were two aspects of his game where the display of his cunning and versatility was at its most exciting.  First was his brilliant ball fakes, which made fools out of the ones defending him…

And second was his amazing playmaking...

He’s arguably the best passing shooting guard of all time.

To wrap this up, let’s revisit that time a bat flew into the court during an early regular-season game against the Kings, which forced the officials to pause the game.  Manu responded with a display of impressive quickness and hand-eye coordination... 

Insane.  He eyed the bat and anticipated its flight path perfectly, as if he had Sharingan (no wonder he was pretty good in stripping the ball off opponents).

Manu Ginobili was a freakin’ ninja!

In a way, that incident with the bat personifies what Manu has brought to the table while playing with the Spurs: in the face of an unfamiliar predicament, while others are at a loss, he would readily take risks and jump into action without a second thought, to perform whatever is needed to address the matter, which usually involves him being an innovative showstopper.