On August 27th, 2018, Manu Ginobili officially announced his retirement from the NBA, putting an end to a 16-year career that saw him become a two-time all-star, a two-time All-NBA 3rd team member, a former Sixth Man of the Year, and a four-time NBA champion. A member of the San Antonio Spurs for all 16 seasons he played, Ginobili will go down as one the best 2nd-round picks, European players, and Spurs' players in history, and will likely find his way into the Basketball Hall of Fame in the coming years. In honor of Ginobili and his career, I'm taking a look back at the 6 greatest performances Ginobili ever had.
December 7th, 2007 vs Utah Jazz
Fresh off of a sweep over the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2007 NBA Finals, the Spurs were looking to repeat as NBA champions the following year, and they started off hot. The team was 16-3 through their first 19 games and were on a five-game winning streak when they came across the 13-6 Utah Jazz led by a strong core of Carlos Boozer, Andrei Kirilenko, Mehmet Okur, and Deron Williams (remember that guy?) With Tim Duncan out of action, someone was going to have to step up on the Spurs roster to get past a tough Jazz team. That someone was Manu Ginobili, who despite coming off the bench played almost 36 minutes and led the team in scoring and steals. Ginobili would drop 37 points on 9/21 (43%) shooting and 17/19 (90%) free throw shooting, adding 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals as he led the Spurs to a 104-98 victory over Utah.
April 2nd, 2010 vs Orlando Magic
By the 2009-10 season, a veteran Spurs team appeared to be showing their age a bit. Following a first-round upset in the playoffs at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks the previous season, the Spurs were still posting a winning record, but they weren't looking as dominant as they had for the past decade. When they crossed paths with Dwight Howard and the 53-22 Orlando Magic on April 2nd, 2010, the team was 45-29 and was missing Tony Parker. Despite the loss of one of their top players, Manu Ginobili was able to step up and put on one of the best performances of his career. Ginobili scored 43 points on 13/25 shooting (52%), 3/6 (50%) three-point shooting, and 14/17 (82%) free throw shooting as he led the team in scoring. Additionally, Ginobili would grab 6 rebounds, dished out 5 assists, and held opponent Vince Carter to just 12 points on 5/15 (33%) shooting. The Spurs would take the win 112-100 and would finish the season with a 50-32 record.
April 9th, 2005 vs Los Angeles Clippers
The Spurs were one year removed from their 2003 NBA Championship win heading into the 2004-05 season. After falling to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games last season in the Western Conference Semifinals, The Spurs were looking to rebound and bring home their third title in seven years. Needless to say (it is the Spurs, after all) they proved to be one of the most dominant teams in the league that year. One team that did give them a run for their money, however, were the Los Angeles Clippers. Despite being 34-42 at the time of this matchup going up against the then 55-20 Spurs, the Clippers were able to hang with their opponents (who were missing Tim Duncan on this night) and fight all the way to double-overtime. However, the Spurs had Manu Ginobili, who pushed them over in the end and gave them the 125-124 win. Ginobili would play 50 minutes and dropped 40 points on 12/27 (44%) shooting, 4/9 (44%) three-point shooting, and 12/14 (86%) free throw shooting, while also adding 6 rebounds and 9 assists along the way. The Spurs would finish the year with a 59-23 record and would win their 3rd championship in franchise history.
February 11th, 2008 vs Toronto Raptors
As I said before, the 2007-08 season saw the defending champion Spurs looking to pull off a repeat the following year. While they started off the year hot with a 17-3 record through their first 20 games, the team had cooled down by the time they came across the Toronto Raptors in February. Holding a 32-17 record at the time, the Spurs would be without Tony Parker for this game as they took on the then 27-22 Raptors, who benefitted from the absence of Parker as it allowed Jose Calderon to drop 27 on the night. However, as he always did when they needed him to, Manu Ginobili came through huge and led the Spurs to a 93-88 win over Toronto. Ginobili would lead the Spurs in just about every category, recording 34 points on 13/22 (59%) shooting and 6/12 (50%) three-point shooting, a career-high 15 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2 steals.
January 21st, 2005 vs Phoenix Suns
As I said before as well, the 2004-05 season would end up being a huge success for the Spurs, as they would go 59-23 on the season and win their second NBA Championship in three years. Before that and even before his 40 point, 6 rebound, 9 assist outing in Los Angeles, The Spurs took on the Phoenix Suns in a battle of two of the Western Conferences best teams. In a match-up that pitted the 32-9 Spurs against the 31-9 Suns, this game had five all-stars between both teams (Ginobili & Duncan from the Spurs, Steve Nash, Shawn Marion, and A'mare Stoudemire on the Suns) playing in a hotly contested match-up that went into overtime. While Phoenix's all-star trio would put up a combined 88 points, along with an additional 21 from Joe Johnson, the Spurs would prevail with a 128-123 win as Manu Ginobili had a career night for himself. Ginobili would drop a career-high 48 points on 16/22 (73%) shooting, 5/7 (71%) three-point shooting, and 11/12 (92%) free throw shooting. Additionally, Ginobili would grab 5 rebounds and record 6 assists in a big win.
February 13th, 2008 vs Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers would make their first NBA Finals appearance in 2007, only to have their (and a 10-year old me's) hopes & dreams crushed by the Spurs, who would decisively sweep them in four games. The next season, the Cavaliers would be out for revenge, which they showcased in a 90-88 win on January 17th, 2008. A month later, the two teams would face off again for the final time that year. Without Tony Parker active for the game, the Spurs had to fend off a Cavaliers team led by LeBron James. In a game that stayed close throughout, the Spurs would 112-105 prevail following a 41 point performance in the fourth quarter. This game also saw Manu Ginobili have arguably the greatest outing of his entire career, as he would drop 46 points on 15/20 (75%) shooting, 8/11 (73%) three-point shooting, and 8/9 (89%) free throw shooting and would record an additional 5 rebounds, 8 assists, and 3 steals. Ginobili would also contribute 18 of his 46 points in the fourth quarter alone, making all 5 of his shots and hitting four three-pointers. Manu Ginobili had many great games over his 16-year career, but it's hard to argue that this wasn't his best ever performance.
Thanks for reading. Be sure to share if you enjoy! Also, feel free to become a patron on my Patreon if you like what I do here and want to support the blog.
Comments
Post a Comment