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In addition to having a 7-foot-4 alien who can shoot, pass, dribble and single-handedly stop elite offenses from getting to the rim, what makes the San Antonio Spurs’ run to the NBA Finals unique is they possess what most champions typically lack: youth.
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When the NBA’s championship round tips off Wednesday night, the Spurs will be looking to become the youngest Finals winner in recent NBA history.
NBC News analyzed the average ages of NBA champions’ playoff rotations since 2016, and San Antonio would be the youngest team to win a title — out-young-ing last year’s Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Spurs rotation’s average age is 24.4, while their opponent, the New York Knicks, are coming in at a relatively ancient 28.8.
Compared with the overall average championship age of 27.8, San Antonio is 3.4 years younger, while the Knicks are 1.0 years older.
The Spurs aren’t just a relatively young team on the whole — their best players are also on the younger side.
San Antonio’s leading scorer in the postseason is center Victor Wembanyama, who is only 22 years old and in his third year in the league. Wembanyama would be the youngest leading scorer to lead his team to a Finals victory in recent history. (If he wins Finals MVP, he would join Magic Johnson and Kawhi Leonard as the youngest players to win it.)
The Spurs’ three leading scorers — Wembanyama, Stephon Castle and De’Aaron Fox — would also be tied with last year’s Thunder as the youngest top-scoring trio of the last 11 NBA Finals.
Compared with New York, San Antonio is led by neophytes. The Knicks’ leading scorer, Jalen Brunson, is 29 and in his eighth season in the NBA. New York’s top three scorers — Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby — also average 29, with none younger than 28.
The median age of leading champion scorers is 27, with Wembanyama coming in a clean five years younger.
At least through three playoff rounds, youth and inexperience haven’t been barriers for the Spurs. They’ve already beaten a team that made two straight conference finals, the Minnesota Timberwolves, as well as last year’s champion, Oklahoma City, en route to the Finals.
In fact, less playoff seasoning may even help San Antonio.
“The lack of experience is a strength of us,” Wembanyama told ESPN on Tuesday. “Because we could do impossible stuff because we don’t know it’s impossible.”
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