Tim Duncan is not “Coach of Whatever He Feels Like” after all

Here is some good reading while you wait for tonight’s late season-opening tip-off.

The Spurs aim to move on without Tim Duncan

It’s an excellent article by Bleacher Report’s Kevin Ding about how the Spurs are approaching this season without Timmy, and it certainly helps that Pau Gasol is ready to assume a leadership role with no fear of Duncan’s shadow hanging over him.

But wait...

"He came around and said hi a couple of times," Popovich said. "We're not hiring him as an assistant coach or anything. We just like his presence. His presence is always welcome."

While hearing that Duncan is not actually on staff is different than what we previously thought, it appears he is happy to just hang around and give some advice when needed without constantly reminding the team of what they are missing. This works.

Does Kawhi stand a chance at being named the MVP this season?

With Warriors players stealing MVP votes from each other, the race for the prestigious award should be wide open. SB Nation takes a look at all the contenders and the pros and cons regarding their chances. They might have a pretty good point on Kawhi Leonard’s “con”...

Manu relives the most painful injury of his career

Manu Ginobili, humble as always, sat down for a 1-on-1 interview with News 4 San Antonio’s Don Harris to cover several topics regarding his career, legacy and family. He also opens up about the most painful injury of his career, which he can now look back and laugh at. Never change, Manu.

Interesting Fact of the Day

By now, you probably already know that the Spurs waived former first round pick Livio Jean-Charles (among others) to make room for two undrafted rookies, Bryn Forbes and Nicolas Laprovittola.

What you probably didn’t know is that the Spurs made a bit of unusual history with that decision: it made LJC only fifth first-round draft pick ever to be waived before playing a single game in an NBA uniform.