SpongeBob had just premiered. So had Big Daddy. Napster was live, Livin' La Vida Loca was topping the charts and the San Antonio Spurs had just become NBA Champions — the year was 1999.
NEW YORK, UNITED STATES: Tim Duncan (R) of the San Antonio Spurs holds the MVP trophy as David Robinson holds the championship trophy 25 June, 1999, after the Suprs won game five of the NBA Finals against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden in New York, NY. The Spurs won the game 78-77 to win the series four games to one. (ELECTRONIC IMAGE) AFP PHOTO/Timothy A. CLARY (Photo credit should read TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images)
TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images
Nineteen years ago to the day, Tim Duncan, Avery Johnson and David Robinson led the Silver & Black to what would be their first of five championships. The team defeated the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden 78-77 in Game 5.
The 1999 crown made the Spurs the first and only former ABA team to win an NBA Championship.
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"It's just starting to soak in," Robinson told the San Antonio Express-News about an hour after hoisting the team's first Larry O'Brien in the air alongside MVP Duncan. "Boy, it's been a long journey. It's a joy, man. It's worth every minute of the journey."
Coach Gregg Popovich shared in Robinson's shock.
"It's kind of stunning," Popovich said at the time. "You wonder if it's really true. You wonder what you're doing here."
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Relive one of the team's defining moments in the gallery above.
Madalyn Mendoza is a digital reporter for mySA.com. Read more of her stories here.| mmendoza@mysa.com | Twitter: @MaddySkye
