FOLLOW GAME 1 LIVE<\/a><\/b><\/i><\/p>\n\u201cWhat happened though, there was a lockout. So there was a dispute with the collective bargaining agreement and they hadn\u2019t resolved that so there was technically a lockout.<\/p>\n
\u201cGregg Popovich was at the World Cup, and through another guy, reached out to me at the time and said, \u2018would you be interested in coming to the Spurs?\u2019 Now originally when the guy approached me asking it, I thought he was just pulling my leg.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought, \u2018mate, do you know how old I am?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
At the time, Gaze was 33 years old. He had previously spent time in the NBA with the Washington Bullets in 1994 and was coming off his seventh NBL MVP award.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt seemed highly unusual. And it was at a game I was watching and Popovich wasn\u2019t allowed to talk to players directly because of the lockout, so he said \u2018no, no, no, he\u2019s over the other side of the venue\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe pointed him out and he said, \u2018no, we\u2019re interested and we\u2019d like to have you on board. We\u2019ve got a group that we\u2019re putting together that we think is going to be really strong and we think that you could be of some help to the team.\u2018<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I said, \u2018yeah, sure\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut then, of course, because of the lockout, there was very little communication. To cut a long story short, there were other conversations we had throughout the time and we basically settled on a deal.\u201d<\/p>\n
The NBA lockout eventually shortened the 1998-99 season to just 50 games and led to the cancellation of the All-Star Game. Owners and players spent months negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement before finally reaching a resolution in early January 1999.<\/p>\n
For Gaze, it meant months of uncertainty before his NBA opportunity finally became reality.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019d settled on a deal if the lockout had finished and it was \u2018by the middle of November, we should be back\u2019. Then, you know, \u2018start of December, we should be back.\u2019 It was extending, extending, extending. And there was a genuine fear that we might lose the entire season.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo although we hadn\u2019t officially signed off on anything, all the agreements had been done and then fortunately just around Christmas time they said, \u2018no, no, it\u2019s basically been all sorted.\u2018<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I popped on a plane, got over there and the minute that it was announced that the result had come to terms, then I officially signed and joined the team.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eleven days after the lockout officially ended, Gaze was on a plane to Texas.<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>17Jan99 Andrew Gaze spreads the good news as he prepares to fly out to join the San Antonio Spurs in Texas. p\/ \/Basketball<\/span>Source: News Limited<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nWhile many players would have arrived hoping to carve out a major role, the Australian knew exactly where he stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wasn\u2019t aware of what other players were going to be on the roster, but Popovich and R.C. Buford were very, very clear that my position was \u2026 the way you would describe it is more as an insurance policy.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a short season. It\u2019s a lot of games in that season because it was shorter.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut because of the time frame they had to get those games in, they had triple headers where we played three games in a row.<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew going in exactly what my role was going to be. The likelihood of me having any meaningful role was going to be dependent on if there\u2019s an injury.\u201d<\/p>\n
The adjustment period was brief.<\/p>\n
\u201cI might have played four or five practice games. It wasn\u2019t a lot.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo it all came together really quickly. And then yeah, logged in there and I had a great experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow, my contribution was bordering on irrelevant, but still a great privilege to be a part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>Gaze said he knew his role going in.<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Across 19 regular-season appearances, Gaze logged 58 minutes for San Antonio, sharing the court with some of the biggest names of the era, including Gary Payton, Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, Karl Malone, John Stockton, Chris Webber and Vlade Divac.<\/p>\n
His best performance came in a 114-85 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers, where he played nearly nine minutes and knocked down two of his four three-point attempts. Gaze finished with six points, two rebounds and an assist in what would become the highest-scoring game of his NBA career.<\/p>\n
While his role was limited, the experience placed the Australian basketball icon among some of the greatest players of a generation as he helped the Spurs build towards the first championship in franchise history.<\/p>\n
THE DUNCAN AND ROBINSON EFFECT<\/b><\/p>\n
Joining a locker room headlined by Duncan and Robinson could have been intimidating, but Gaze quickly discovered why the Spurs became one of the NBA\u2019s great dynasties.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it was the combination of both Tim Duncan and David Robinson. You didn\u2019t have to be a basketball savant to realise you\u2019re talking about future Hall of Famers.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe good thing is that Pop had a sort of a no d***head policy.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd although they were bona fide superstars, the most impressive thing about them is that they absolutely bought into Pop and Pop\u2019s very demanding.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd he would hold all the players to account. But it started with Tim and David and because the fact that they bought in, no ego, they bought in and were accepting of that coaching where they knew they were going to be held accountable as much as me as the last player on the roster or them as the big dogs.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>Superstar duoDavid Robinson and Tim Duncan.<\/span>Source: AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nGaze said Duncan and Robinson\u2019s willingness to embrace Popovich\u2019s demanding coaching style set the standard for everyone else.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re treated, as far as your accountability with your actions on the floor and practices and those things, they bought into that.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a long time ago, so it\u2019s a different era, but some of the feedback that Pop would provide was extraordinarily direct.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo for me to adjust into that and seeing how they were buying in and genuine leadership with their behaviour because they were of a status that, and they hadn\u2019t won five championships then, Pop had some moments in the season where there was some speculation he may not see the season out.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut their personality types and the way in which they embraced the coaching style and the system, I think was pivotal to the success.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>Andrew Gaze tretches on the sidelines during the game against the Sacramento Kings<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nTHE PERFECT SUPERSTAR<\/b><\/p>\n
Long before Patty Mills and Aron Baynes won a championship alongside Duncan in 2014, Gaze became the first Australian teammate of Duncan\u2019s NBA career.<\/p>\n
The Spurs star was only in his second season, but the qualities that would define his Hall of Fame career were already clear.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was very accepting. You know, he didn\u2019t flaunt his status. He wasn\u2019t out there trying to make sure and let everyone know that it\u2019s his team and he\u2019s the man. He was embracing, encouraging, supportive.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was a guy that was always looking to learn. He was not demonstrative among the group with laying the law down or being critical or anything in that way.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut his actions, as the old adage says, \u2018actions speak louder than words\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd whether it was how he dealt with Pop and being the way in which he was embracing of his teammates, all those things made it a joy to be around.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I think it\u2019s one of the reasons why he\u2019s so lauded. He never chased celebrity, he never chased media. His ego was always in check.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was just really the perfect teammate for a superstar. As far as superstars go, it\u2019d be tough to find a more humble, unassuming superstar than Tim Duncan.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>San Antonio Spurs’ Tim Duncan.<\/span>Source: AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nA CHAMPIONSHIP TO TREASURE<\/b><\/p>\n
While Gaze\u2019s role on the court was limited, the championship remains one of the proudest moments of his career.<\/p>\n
The ring, he says, is not a reminder of what he didn\u2019t contribute. Instead, it represents gratitude and a once-in-a-lifetime experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have it in my trophy cabinet sitting alongside my signed ball that we all got at the end of the journey.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe all got a signed ball as just a bit of memorabilia.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I keep it there and I have nothing but fond memories.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a joy.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd it\u2019s something that would have been more challenging for me as a youngster. But the age I was, the stage of my career, it was nothing but gratitude and just felt like it was an enormous privilege to be a part of it and sharing it in that very small way.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>11Nov99 The NBA Championship ring Andrew Gaze will receive before Friday nights game. \/Basketball<\/span>Source: News Limited<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nWHO WINS THE 2026 NBA FINALS?<\/b><\/p>\n
With the Spurs and Knicks preparing to renew their rivalry on the NBA\u2019s biggest stage, Gaze believes San Antonio has the edge, provided its superstar stays healthy.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the Spurs will win if Victor Wembanyama can stay healthy and can play like he has been playing. There\u2019s no reason to think that he won\u2019t.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think Jalen Brunson is just a bona fide superstar. He\u2019s terrific. I really enjoy watching him play.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot to like about what New York have done this season, but at the end of the day, Victor Wembanyama, he changes the game.\u201d<\/p>\n
NBA FINALS SCHEDULE <\/b><\/p>\n
Game One: Thursday, June 4, 10:30 AM AEDT <\/p>\n
Game Two: Saturday, June 6, 10:30 AM AEDT <\/p>\n
Game Three: Tuesday, June 9, 10:30 AM AEDT <\/p>\n
Game Four: Thursday, June 11, 10:30 AM AEDT<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Twenty-seven years after the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks met in the 1999 NBA Finals, basketball fans are on the verge of witnessing the long-awaited rematch. Watch every game of the 2026 NBA Finals LIVE with ESPN on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":246613,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6807],"tags":[156],"class_list":{"0":"post-246612","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-leagues-cups","8":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/246612","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=246612"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/246612\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/246613"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=246612"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=246612"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=246612"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}