2014 is not 2013. Seems obvious, doesn’t it? All you have to do is look at someone’s phone, or a computer, or a television and there it is: 2014. But for a few days this June, it seemed like last year. The San Antonio Spurs and the Miami Heat had met up for an NBA Finals rematch to end all rematches, and there was a definite pattern. Convincing game one win by the Spurs, bounce back game two thriller for Miami, Then a nasty blowout in San Antonio’s favor in game three. LeBron and the Heat were just a tiny, tiny bit too much for the Spurs last time around, and it was reasonable to wonder if 2014 was just 2013 over again.
In the wake of game five and the Spurs’ decisive Finals win, it’s safe to say that this is a new year. Last year I headed to San Antonio, hoping to experience a city in the throes of joy and exultation. It was not to be. A game known only as Game Six took place, and gave the Rockets a preview of the devastation that true contention and ongoing greatness can demand. Instead, this time the city did erupt all around me, reveling in their fifth such victory in fifteen years. All was right in San Antonio once again. In one city, everyone was crying out in relief that the natural order was restored once again.
Well, not everyone.
The joy was infectious and easy to join. High fives flowed like water and Spurs flags fluttered on every other car that gradually crept through the throng. News cameras recorded throngs of fans chanting “Go, Spurs, go!” into the night, and everyone stepped to the beat of a black and silver drum. Everyone except for me. The goal was to experience something Houston has been missing for twenty years, since the last Houston Rockets championship in 1995. The reality was that crashing another man’s feast isn’t the same as having your own bounty.
Last year showed how tough living at the top can be, but this year was a lesson on how far the rest of the league really is from the top. The Spurs were not just the best team in the league, but the best team by a landslide. Miami’s 54 win total consigned them to the same grisly fate as the 54 win Trail Blazers: four blowouts and a narrow win. Were the Heat actually any better than their 54 win companions in the West? We may never know, especially since Miami looked like a team rocked to its core. If even the blistering Heat and rolling Thunder can’t even keep pace with the San Antonio Spurs, what chance do the fledgeling Rockets have?
Seeing a city succumb to paroxysms of triumph brings only reflected joy for Houston. The taste of a neighbor’s celebration is dangerous for Houston; it may have been twenty years, but the addiction to championships won’t ever go into full remission. Rockets owner Les Alexander should have flown his players to San Antonio to incite the same hunger in them, so that they too could feel a pit in their stomachs as they saw another city devour the meal that could have been Houston’s.
Could have, not should have. That hunger will be necessary for the Rockets to even stand a chance in the NBA, but it might not be enough. They still don’t deserve a championship, not yet. Not until they have something that can match the NATO joint army worth of weapons that San Antonio brings to bear. Not until the Rockets can boast a system of selflessness and passing mentality at the level of the Spurs. Not until the leaders of the team begin to lead by example and not by singlemindedness. Kawhi Leonard, Chandler Parsons’ interstate rival, won Finals MVP. Parsons looked like he had closed most of the gap on Leonard during the year, and would give his fellow 2011 draftee a run for his money. No, not this year. Unlike last year, the 2014 Spurs were untouchable.
But as 2014 was not 2013, the hope is that 2015 will be a new year as well. Time is running out, but the Spurs seem adept enough at outracing the hands of the clock. The Spurs are adept at everything, and their victory seems like the only possible outcome, now. Their victory brings joy to millions in one city, and hollows out an equal number just to the east. All fans of the NBA should congratulate the city of San Antonio and their exceptional team on a well-earned championship, yet again. The Rockets and their fans should, too. But they should also let that little pit form in their stomachs. Being hungry and being so far from the table hurts, especially when you thought you had a seat. But if you ever want to sit at the table, you’ve got to be hungry first.
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