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| For Spurs, Every Game Is a Global Summit | For Spurs, Every Game Is a Global Summit |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| MIAMI — When the N.B.A. finals began here Thursday, basketball fans across the world were watching, whether it was early in the day or the middle of the night. So it was appropriate that one of the teams on the court was the San Antonio Spurs, with a roster including an N.B.A.-record nine players from outside the continental United States. | |
| Many fans know that Tim Duncan is from the Virgin Islands, Manu Ginobili is from Argentina, and Tony Parker is from France. Fewer may realize that Boris Diaw is from France, too, or that Tiago Splitter is from Brazil, or that Cory Joseph is from Canada. The Spurs’ 15-man roster also includes Nando de Colo of France and Aron Baynes and Patty Mills of Australia. | |
| The Spurs’ opponents, the defending champion Miami Heat, have only one international player: Joel Anthony of Canada. | The Spurs’ opponents, the defending champion Miami Heat, have only one international player: Joel Anthony of Canada. |
| This disparity does not necessarily make the Spurs the more popular team around the world; the Heat, after all, have LeBron James. But as the Spurs, a model of consistency in American professional sports, seek their fifth championship in the last 15 seasons, they can be proud that they are, in Splitter’s words, the United Nations of the N.B.A. | |
| “It’s great to play with these guys,” said Splitter, who was born in Blumenau, Brazil. He added: “Everybody wants to do it right and make the effort to win. I’m really proud to be a part of this team.” | “It’s great to play with these guys,” said Splitter, who was born in Blumenau, Brazil. He added: “Everybody wants to do it right and make the effort to win. I’m really proud to be a part of this team.” |
| In recent decades, the N.B.A. has been hugely successful in helping to make basketball a global sport. As the league has grown, both in revenue and in marketing, more players have decided to leave their homelands for the United States. The N.B.A. finished its regular season with a record 85 international players, from 36 countries and territories. | In recent decades, the N.B.A. has been hugely successful in helping to make basketball a global sport. As the league has grown, both in revenue and in marketing, more players have decided to leave their homelands for the United States. The N.B.A. finished its regular season with a record 85 international players, from 36 countries and territories. |
| But no N.B.A. team does it quite like the Spurs. They had six players from outside the United States when they last won the title, in 2007, and had seven players who competed for national teams during the 2012 London Olympics. | But no N.B.A. team does it quite like the Spurs. They had six players from outside the United States when they last won the title, in 2007, and had seven players who competed for national teams during the 2012 London Olympics. |
| Diaw, who was born in northern France, said he knew people in his home country who went to bed early and woke at 3 a.m. Friday to watch Thursday night’s Game 1 in Miami, which the Spurs won, 92-88. | Diaw, who was born in northern France, said he knew people in his home country who went to bed early and woke at 3 a.m. Friday to watch Thursday night’s Game 1 in Miami, which the Spurs won, 92-88. |
| “A lot of people follow us during the season,” Diaw said. “Usually, they record it and watch it the next day. But for the finals, as I remembered when I was living there, when you were young, you wake up to watch the games.” | “A lot of people follow us during the season,” Diaw said. “Usually, they record it and watch it the next day. But for the finals, as I remembered when I was living there, when you were young, you wake up to watch the games.” |
| For R. C. Buford, San Antonio’s general manager, having the most international players in N.B.A. history was not necessarily done by design. For years, he has worked with Coach Gregg Popovich to build a team that fits Popovich’s system, which emphasizes teamwork and selflessness. These concepts may be easier to sell to players who learned the game far from the hype that can distort the development of fundamental basketball in the United States. | For R. C. Buford, San Antonio’s general manager, having the most international players in N.B.A. history was not necessarily done by design. For years, he has worked with Coach Gregg Popovich to build a team that fits Popovich’s system, which emphasizes teamwork and selflessness. These concepts may be easier to sell to players who learned the game far from the hype that can distort the development of fundamental basketball in the United States. |
| “I think our coaches have embraced, ‘Let’s get the best basketball team we can, and let’s not limit ourselves by the borders of countries,’ ” Buford said. “We’re the beneficiary of the growth of basketball.” | “I think our coaches have embraced, ‘Let’s get the best basketball team we can, and let’s not limit ourselves by the borders of countries,’ ” Buford said. “We’re the beneficiary of the growth of basketball.” |
| Popovich, who has led the Spurs since 1996 and is the longest-tenured coach in American professional sports, majored in Soviet studies at the Air Force Academy. He has said that his travels while playing basketball in the military exposed him to the high quality of basketball being played around the world. That realization in turn laid the groundwork for the emphasis on adding international players to the Spurs’ roster. | Popovich, who has led the Spurs since 1996 and is the longest-tenured coach in American professional sports, majored in Soviet studies at the Air Force Academy. He has said that his travels while playing basketball in the military exposed him to the high quality of basketball being played around the world. That realization in turn laid the groundwork for the emphasis on adding international players to the Spurs’ roster. |
| It also helps the Spurs that their three best-known players — Duncan, Parker and Ginobili — have been with the team for so long, making San Antonio a particularly attractive destination for players from overseas. | It also helps the Spurs that their three best-known players — Duncan, Parker and Ginobili — have been with the team for so long, making San Antonio a particularly attractive destination for players from overseas. |
| “I’m sure they may make it easier,” Buford said of the effect that Duncan, Parker and Ginobili can have on the assimilation process that international players face when they join the N.B.A. | “I’m sure they may make it easier,” Buford said of the effect that Duncan, Parker and Ginobili can have on the assimilation process that international players face when they join the N.B.A. |
| Splitter said Ginobili had been important to his growth on and off the court. In 2010, during Splitter’s first months in San Antonio, he said, Ginobili helped him look for a house and learn the Spurs’ playbook. | Splitter said Ginobili had been important to his growth on and off the court. In 2010, during Splitter’s first months in San Antonio, he said, Ginobili helped him look for a house and learn the Spurs’ playbook. |
| “He is the guy that helps me out the most here,” Splitter said of Ginobili. “I’m appreciative of what he’s done for me.” | “He is the guy that helps me out the most here,” Splitter said of Ginobili. “I’m appreciative of what he’s done for me.” |
| Ginobili said that when the Spurs brought in a new international player, he loved being a mentor. | Ginobili said that when the Spurs brought in a new international player, he loved being a mentor. |
| “The first years, I started to feel like a guide to the new guys,” Ginobili said. “It felt great because I needed that at the beginning, a sort of an anchor. I’m very lucky. At the same time, it’s great to have so many international players that went through some of the things you’ve been through.” | “The first years, I started to feel like a guide to the new guys,” Ginobili said. “It felt great because I needed that at the beginning, a sort of an anchor. I’m very lucky. At the same time, it’s great to have so many international players that went through some of the things you’ve been through.” |
| Danny Green, one of the six American-born players on the Spurs, is a 25-year-old from New York. He played at North Carolina and spent his rookie year with the Cleveland Cavaliers. After a brief stint in Slovenia during the 2011 lockout, he found stability with the Spurs. | Danny Green, one of the six American-born players on the Spurs, is a 25-year-old from New York. He played at North Carolina and spent his rookie year with the Cleveland Cavaliers. After a brief stint in Slovenia during the 2011 lockout, he found stability with the Spurs. |
| So what is it like to play alongside teammates who can speak French, Portuguese or Spanish just as easily as they can converse in English? | So what is it like to play alongside teammates who can speak French, Portuguese or Spanish just as easily as they can converse in English? |
| Green said that he enjoyed the experience and that the conversations were always interesting. | Green said that he enjoyed the experience and that the conversations were always interesting. |
| “We all have our different stories,” Green said. “It’s amazing how small the world is and who knows who and what type of basketball they play. It’s fun.” | “We all have our different stories,” Green said. “It’s amazing how small the world is and who knows who and what type of basketball they play. It’s fun.” |
| When international players started to enter the league in large numbers, a common perception was that they might not be tough enough to compete with, and beat, Americans. | When international players started to enter the league in large numbers, a common perception was that they might not be tough enough to compete with, and beat, Americans. |
| The Spurs disproved that notion. Now, after achieving a long list of distinctions, they are in range of another: the N.B.A. champion with the fewest American-born players. | The Spurs disproved that notion. Now, after achieving a long list of distinctions, they are in range of another: the N.B.A. champion with the fewest American-born players. |
| The essence of the Spurs was symbolized late in Game 1, when they ran a perfect play on offense. Parker used a screen from Duncan to find an open Ginobili behind the 3-point line. Ginobili could have taken the shot, but instead found a wide-open Green, whose 3-pointer gave the Spurs their biggest lead of the game, 88-81. | The essence of the Spurs was symbolized late in Game 1, when they ran a perfect play on offense. Parker used a screen from Duncan to find an open Ginobili behind the 3-point line. Ginobili could have taken the shot, but instead found a wide-open Green, whose 3-pointer gave the Spurs their biggest lead of the game, 88-81. |
| For those keeping score, the ball had gone from a Frenchman to an Argentine to an American. Not bad for the United Nations of the N.B.A. | For those keeping score, the ball had gone from a Frenchman to an Argentine to an American. Not bad for the United Nations of the N.B.A. |