Agony of 2013 loss to Heat helped Spurs stay focused, says Tim Duncan
Veteran says their defeat by Miami last year helped San Antonio stay focused this time
Tim Duncan insists that last year's agonising loss to the Miami Heat in the NBA finals played a big role in this year's championship victory.
"What happened last year definitely helped our drive and helped us stay focused for an extended period of time," he said. "It very easily could have hit us in different ways and we could have reacted in different ways.
What happened last year definitely helped our drive and helped us stay focused for an extended period of time
"But we reacted the right way. We got great leadership from the top in [coach Gregg Popovich] who came back absolutely fired up and ready to go. To push us this far and this hard and to come out with the championship is amazing."
The Spurs routed the two-time defending champions Heat 104-87 on Sunday to win their fifth title and first since 2007. San Antonio and Miami split the first two games of the series but something changed for the Spurs and they were virtually flawless in the next three games to claim the title.
Last year, the Spurs, leading 3-2 in the best-of-seven series, squandered a five-point lead in the final 28 seconds of regulation in game six and lost 103-100 in overtime.
San Antonio then lost game seven and spent the offseason wondering how the game slipped away.