Tim Duncan to continue playing for San Antonio Spurs on the current contract – NBA Update
Tim Duncan, the veteran power forward and backbone of the San Antonio Spurs Dynasty, has reportedly decided not to opt out of his current contract with the Spurs.
The forward will enter the final year of his contract next season and he has the option of opting out of it to test the free market.
Duncan has been a Spurs player for his entire career and was part of the team that won the first NBA World Championship in the history of the franchise. Alongside revered Spurs centre David Robinson, Duncan was a pivotal figure
on the team. The duo was named “the two towers” as they dominated the league.
Since Robinson’s retirement, Duncan has kept on playing for the San Antonio Spurs, forming the core of the side alongside Manu Ginobili and French point guard Tony Parker. Duncan went on to win 3 more NBA World Championships after
his and the Spurs first, helping San Antonio become the most successful team of the current Millennium behind the Los Angeles Lakers.
Regarded as a living legend in San Antonio, there was little chance of Tim Duncan leaving the city he has brought so much success to. Duncan will earn around $21 million over the next year through his current contract.
If he were to opt out of it and negotiate a new one with the San Antonio Spurs, the wages would definitely be much lower than what he is currently getting. He could perhaps get something close to what he earns now if he moves to
some other team as a free agent, but Duncan is a loyal person and it is hard to imagine him in any other jersey than the Spurs’.
San Antonio too seem to be unwilling to offer a new deal to Tim Duncan at this juncture. The forward is 35 years of age and the Spurs want to see what he can still offer to the team after next season. The current labour dispute
of the NBA regarding a new CBA, one which will most likely be less friendly to the players is also bound to be on the mind of the Spurs management.
They would naturally want to negotiate with Tim Duncan under the new CBA rather than the current one; therefore they are willing to wait until the end of next season. Duncan could also decide to retire rather than be a role player
on a bloated contract at that time.
Duncan averaged 13.3 points and almost 9 rebounds per game over the course of the 2010-2011 season. The player was also a stalwart at the defensive end with 1.9 blocks per game.
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