Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker have combined to help San Antonio win three of the franchise’s four titles in NBA history.
Yahoo Sports writer Victor Chi considered that past history when he ranked the San Antonio trio among the seven greatest threesomes in NBA history.
Chi’s dividing point was that each group must have been involved in at least two NBA championships.
Here is what he had to say about Duncan, Ginobili and Parker and :
The Spurs were never the sexiest team in the league, but they were brutally efficient while parlaying sound fundamentals into three championships. Duncan had a previous title, tag-teaming with David Robinson.”
The other six trios that are included with the Spurs’ “Big Three” include the following:
- Boston’s Bob Cousy, Tom Heinsohn and Bill Russell
- New York’s Walt Frazier, Dave DeBusschere and Willis Reed
- Los Angeles Lakers’ Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and James Worthy
- Chicago’s Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman
- Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal and Derek Fisher
- Boston’s Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish
When considered in terms of the others on the list, the Spurs’ grouping ranks in the middle of the pack at the worst. Duncan and Ginobili are certain Hall of Fame members and Parker has a good shot if he finishes his career strongly.
Obviously, if LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade stick together for several years and can win a couple of championships with Miami they will qualify on a future list. And others fail to make the cut because they weren’t around to win two titles together.