The San Antonio Spurs have had more than their fair share of elite talent, although these five players would have turned them into the best franchise ever if they had just come to town a few years sooner.
The San Antonio Spurs have never really had a shortage of talent. From George Gervin to David Robinson, then Tim Duncan, and now Victor Wembanyama, a transcendent player has almost always been in San Antonio.
As a result, notable free agents often find their way to Texas. However, a lot of them are well past their primes, looking to win a ring before they retire. Five players stand out as guys who joined the Spurs too late. Had they come in their prime, they might have gone down as all-time greats who were decorated winners.
Honorable mentions go to Antonio McDyess, David West, and David Lee, who all joined the Spurs too late. However, as power forwards, they would have been redundant anyway, as their primes overlapped with Duncan's. Andre Miller, too, would have been an elite addition. His prime was just before Tony Parker's, although throwing the Frenchman into the fire early worked out.
5. Rudy Gay
Rudy Gay spent three seasons with the Spurs immediately after Kawhi Leonard was traded to the Toronto Raptors. When he arrived, he was already 32 years old. Along with DeMar DeRozan and LaMarcus Aldridge, the Spurs remained afloat before totally embracing a rebuild.
During his prime, from 2007 to 2015, he was one of the best players to not make an All-Star Game. He averaged 19.6 points and six rebounds for the Memphis Grizzlies, Sacramento Kings, and Raptors in that span.
Thanks to his offensive prowess, he would have been an upgrade over a young and raw Kawhi Leonard in 2013, maybe allowing the Spurs to win an additional ring. He would have been an upgrade over a past-his-prime Michael Finley, as well.
In 2009, the Spurs were upset in the first round by the Dallas Mavericks. It was the only season when Matt Bonner was a full-time starter. The Red Rocket was a better shooter, sure, although Gay was a well-rounded player. Instead, the Spurs got him at the tail end of his career.
4. Kevin Martin
Kevin Martin, like Gay, was never an All-Star. Most fans probably don't remember his stint in San Antonio, as he only played 16 games with the Spurs to end his career. He averaged 6.2 points in 2016.
At the time, the Spurs were getting ready to pass the torch from Duncan to Leonard. Martin's best years were with the Kings and Houston Rockets in the late 2000s, where he was a solid shooter and a good scorer.
While he was lighting it up, the Spurs were taking turns starting Finley, Roger Mason, and Brent Barry. Even Manu Ginobili saw the starting lineup at that point. Instead of that cast of characters, imagine Martin, Duncan, Parker, Bruce Bowen, and Bonner (or Gay) all starting.
Shooting, defense, and playmaking would have been abundant. The Spurs won titles in 2005, 2007, and 2014. With Martin sharing the backcourt with Parker, maybe they could have repeated once.
3. Michael Finley
So far on this list, Michael Finley has caught a lot of flak. He played parts of five seasons with the Spurs from 2005-10, averaging 9.3 points and three rebounds.
With the Dallas Mavericks, though, he was a two-time All-Star. He scored 19.8 points per game and was a solid shooter, peaking in the late 1990s and into the 2000s. Imagine the Spurs with Duncan, Robinson, and Finley. Plus, Parker and Ginobili were emerging.
Finley bounced between the starting five and the bench for the Spurs and was key in their title run in 2007, averaging a ruthlessly efficient 13.1 points in the Western Conference playoffs. If the Spurs had the best version of him on the floor in the Duncan and Robinson years, though, it's hard to imagine the Los Angeles Lakers three-peating with Shaq and Kobe. The Spurs would have gotten the better of them at some point.
Finley is an executive for the Dallas Mavericks, where he spent his prime. He's well-loved at the American Airlines Center, although if he had played in San Antonio and found team success, he probably would have been a Hall of Famer.
2. Pau Gasol
In his best three seasons with the Lakers, Pau Gasol won two rings, made three All-NBA Teams, and averaged an 18-point double-double. He was a solid, physical defender and is remembered as Kobe Bryant's favorite teammate ever.
Imagine him on the Spurs while playing at that level. Duncan would have been the defensive anchor, Parker and Ginobili would have carved up defenses, and Gasol would have been an upgrade at center.
While Gasol was stacking rings next to Bryant in Hollywood, the Spurs were starting Fabricio Oberto, Antonio McDyess, and DeJuan Blair down low next to Duncan. All of them were capable in their role, but none of them were stars.
Gasol was a bona fide Hall of Famer at his peak and would have made the Spurs the best team of the 2010s. Instead, he came to San Antonio when he was 36 years old. He started to become a reliable stretch center with the Spurs, but by then, it was clear that his best days were long behind him.
1. Tracy McGrady
Miller, McDyess, West, and Lee were all kept off this list because the Spurs simply had better players already on the roster during their primes. The same can't be said for McGrady.
He only played in six games for the Spurs, all in the 2013 playoffs. He never scored a point. By then, age and injuries had caught up to him, and he retired without a ring. In his prime, though, with the Houston Rockets and Orlando Magic, he averaged 26.3 points. He was one of the best scorers of his generation.
From 2000-2008, while McGrady was making the All-NBA Team after the All-NBA Team, the Spurs won three titles. T-Mac wasn't known as a playoff riser, but if he bought into Gregg Popovich's system, he would have gone down as a top-15 player ever.
Duncan still would have been the best player on the Spurs, but with Parker facilitating and Ginobili and McGrady on the wings, San Antonio would have been the model offense. Add in Bruce Bowen as a defensive stopper, and it's hard to imagine anyone slowing down the Spurs.
Some players got left off this list simply because there were better options already on the Spurs. During McGrady's prime, you'd be hard-pressed to find a better wing. In the two seasons he won the scoring title, the Spurs were starting Stephen Jackson and Hedo Türkoğlu. Swap them out for McGrady, and alongside Bowen, Parker, Duncan, and late-career David Robinson, and no one is beating them.
Add a young Ginobili off the bench. That's the best roster in the NBA by far.
