The San Antonio Spurs trio of Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Paker crushed the visiting Thunder last night, 112-77. The win meant more than a 2-0 series led, though as San Antonio’s “Big Three” are in first place for the winningest trio in NBA history, one game ahead of the Lakers’ “Showtime” triumvirate of Michael Cooper, Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
The Showtime crew of Magic, Kareem and sharp shooting defensive whiz Michael Cooper, won 110 playoff games between the 1979-80 season and 1988-89 when Jabbar retired. Duncan, Parker and Manu have now won 111 games since they came together before the 2002-03 season.
Magic, Kareem and shooting guard turned NBA coach, Byron Scott, rank third on the list of trios with 93 all-time playoff wins. Fourth on the list of trios is the Celtics’ 1980s frontcourt of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish, who won 92 playoff games together in the 1980s.
Sustained excellence is the product of these historic trios. The most dynamic threesome in the game today, not counting San Antonio’s seemingly immortal group under Popovich, would be Miami’s all-stars Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James. Through three plus postseasons together, they’ve won 55 playoff games together, an amazing mark with three Eastern Conference Titles and 2 NBA titles. They’re three games away from winning a fourth consecutive Conference title while attempting to 3-peat.
Yet, even after all that, the Heat are still only halfway to the Spurs’ total.
What do you think?
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