SAN ANTONIO, May 6, 2010 – With his selections to the 2009-10 All-NBA Third Team and 2009-10 All-Defensive Second Team, Tim Duncan continues to carve out a unique piece of history. Duncan is the only player in NBA history to have garnered All-NBA Team and All-Defensive Team honors in each of his 13 seasons.
Duncan trails only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (15), Karl Malone (14) and Shaquille O’Neal (14) in career All-NBA Team selections. He is the first player since Shaquille O’Neal (1993-2006) to be selected to an All-NBA team for 13 straight seasons. The longest All-NBA selection streak belongs to Karl Malone, who garnered All-NBA honors for 14 straight seasons from 1988-2001. Duncan is also the active leader with nine All-NBA First team selections; he has also been named to three All-NBA Second Teams.
Duncan’s 13th All-Defensive Team selection ranks him first in NBA history and two ahead of second place Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He is the only player in NBA history to have been an All-Defensive Team selection for more than 10 consecutive seasons. Duncan also ranks first amongst active players with All-Defensive selections (Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett each have 10 total selections).
On the season, Duncan averaged 17.9 points, 10.1 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.50 blocks in 78 games. He logged 38 double-doubles, good for 12th in the league, including 22 20-point, 10-rebound games. On 11/19 vs. Utah, he moved into second on the Spurs all-time NBA scoring list behind David Robinson. With a first quarter jumper against Houston on 1/22, Duncan became the seventh player in NBA history to reach 20,000 points, 10,000 rebounds and 2,000 blocked shots. He also made his 11th career All-Star start and 12th career All-Star appearance during All-Star Weekend in Dallas.
Here’s a look at the players with the most All-NBA and All-Defensive Team selections in the same season (in parenthesis most consecutive selections):
Tim Duncan 13 (13)
Gary Payton 9 (9)
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 9 (6)
Michael Jordan 9 (6)
Kobe Bryant 9 (5)
Kevin Garnett 8 (8)
David Robinson 8 (7)
John Havlicek 8 (6)
Hakeem Olajuwon 8 (2)