FROM THE eighth seed, the Knicks reached through the dark clouds that had hovered over their season, were one point away from being 2-2 in what was about to become a winnable NBA Final. From 21-21, bad enough to help get a GM fried and baste a coach for roasting, the Knicks really were close to reaching all the way to the sky last night when they found out it was not the limit, after all.
No, several feet higher were Tim Duncan and David Robinson, 14 combined feet of abject rejection, throwing back their dreams even more forcefully than Larry Johnson would like to take a swatter to the assembled basketball media.
The World Trade Center doesn’t dominate our skyline like San Antonio’s Twin Towers of David Robinson and Tim Duncan rose to the occasion in Game 4 last night with a combined 42 points and 35 of their team’s 49 rebounds, one more than the Knicks managed in total.
Ah, it was a reach anyway, expecting the Knicks to win a title with oversized hearts and undersized bodies. Win last night and their grasp might even have proved as strong as their ambition but getting over one hump – a Duncan seven-point burst early in the third quarter that staked the Spurs to 13-point lead – only necessitated getting over one more – Robinson’s presence on the boards down the stretch after Jeff Van Gundy’s relentless team had fought back.
They missed some good looks, but were caught looking out of the corner of their now glassy eyes on some others. Since no team has ever come back from 3-1 to win any Final, not only would the Knicks now have to write history, but sneak it into a library whose steps are guarded by two lions.
“Not only did they affect us scoring and on the post, but every penetration was a difficult shot because of their shot blocking,” said Van Gundy. “Those guys are great, great players.”
Robinson grabbed nine offensive rebounds, some of them in Van Gundy’s mind truly offensive, but in the end he admitted there was no faulting the Knick efforts, except for their mothers for not producing bigger offspring. Alas, Dave Checketts would have to admit that even Phil Jackson can’t coach size. With Duncan getting 18 caroms and Robinson 17, the Spurs just ate the boards, and the Knicks with it.
“Size does matter in the league,” said Van Gundy. “And their size beat our speed and quickness.”
Duncan, coming off a three-turnover, 0-for-4 fourth quarter in Game 3, committed another three fourth-quarter giveaways last night, teasing the Knicks and the crowd with the apparently availability of the game, even scaring the Spurs a little with their 17 turnovers in all.
“We made some really dumb mistakes tonight,” said Robinson. But the buttons on Gregg Popovich’s machine remained greased as Duncan, endlessly doubled, hit the open man. The Spurs had five players score 14 points or more, the spokes staying straight and true because of the essential strength of the hub.
Duncan started the second half by drawing a foul from Johnson, hitting two free throws, then combined with Robinson for a wishbone block of Johnson layup that Mario Elie finished at the other end. Duncan hooked over Marcus Camby, then hit a bank after a Robinson block on Houston. The Spurs, up four at the break, had spurted to a 13-point lead.
After Latrell Sprewell closed the Knicks to 68-61 and Johnson forced Duncan for one of the few times all night to take the pass where he didn’t want it – three feet off the blocks – Duncan waited for the double team and kicked back out to Avery Johnson, who nailed an 18-footer.
Duncan committed turnovers on two consecutive possessions, a travel and a bad pass out of a double-team, but got back to reject Sprewell from behind. At 79- 72, Camby had a catch along the baseline and time to turn, but with the Legion of Doom advancing, hesitated and hit the rim.
The Knicks kept coming. A Charlie Ward free throw got it to 81-80, but after a Robinson jump hook, Duncan followed with another hook to take the lead back to five. The two looked like big brothers, teasing little brothers futility leaping for balls being held just over their grasp.
Life is not fair, and neither to the rest of the NBA for the next 12 years will be a package of size and smooth like Duncan’s.
“I haven’t seen anything faze Tim Duncan to date,” said Popovich. “It doesn’t matter how he plays, he’ll continue to do his thing. He is just able to move on.”
There’s not far for him to go now. For Duncan, it’s a short turnaround from here, a bank over the overmatched Johnson, kissed off the glass all the way to the bank. Nearing the end of a season of roster upheaval in the NBA, one thing remains constant. The identity of the best player in the NBA may have changed, but like every year, uncannily, he still has his team one game away from a title.