Imagine somebody doing something they love one last time. What would be going through their mind? For Tim Duncan, there was a whole career going through his mind when he walked off the basketball court for the last time. After losing in the 2016 National Basketball Association (NBA) Playoffs, Duncan was left with mixed emotions. He was the focal point for the San Antonio Spurs organization, and he was heartbroken that his 19-year career with them was over. Even though in this dark time, he was able to reflect his whole career by holding one finger over his head. Over the course of these 19 years, Duncan accomplished so many feats that other basketball players cannot feasibly imagine accomplishing. Duncan was a five-time champion, a 15-time all-star, and won other prestigious awards. He was able to leave a unique legacy of unselfishness, humility, and the importance of teamwork. On first glance, the audience believes that the picture is only about Duncan’s last game. However, there is a deeper meaning. What the audience does not realize is that this picture describes Tim Duncan, the greatest power forward to play basketball, through four features which show a distinct legacy that he left for the game of basketball over the span of his 19 years in the NBA. 

Even though Duncan was the greatest power forward of all time, he never wanted to be the focal point. In this picture, the audience is immediately drawn to the number 21 in the picture. This number was the center piece for the Spurs organization, it meant everything to them for the past twenty years. Not only that, but this number meant something to everyone in the National Basketball Association too. As easily seen in the picture, fans from the opposing team were cheering and taking pictures of him. Typically, fans are not cheering for the opposing team. Getting all of this attention from the crowd contradicted what Duncan left as his legacy. Duncan had a distinctive mindset compared to other basketball players that made his legacy unique. He was humble. He never sought attention from the media. In the picture, Duncan’s head was facing the ground so he could avoid all cameras and avoid eye contact with other people. He disliked the media in general that he even had his back turned toward the camera when this picture was taken. It is clearly shown show that the future hall of famer certainly does not not like any type of attention from the media. Since he was the greatest power forward, he attracted attention from the media and the opposing team’s fans whether he liked it or not. That is why in the picture he was walking immediately towards the sign that said “Home.” This was an exit to get to his team’s locker room. He did not wait for any teammates, because he thought if he stayed on the court any longer then he would have to do an interview. He wanted to avoid an interview at all costs. What Duncan did not realize was that he got all of this attention from the sports media and fans of basketball for his feats during his 19 year NBA Career.    

One amazing feat was that Duncan won five NBA Championships and earned two Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards during his career. Only a select few of basketball players have ever done this. When Duncan was walking off the basketball court he was able to hold one finger over his head to show everyone that he was the greatest power forward. This finger signified the astonishing career that he had, and Duncan finally realized how great his career was. This was a part of his legacy too, he wanted to be competent in anything related to basketball. He knew that this was his last time walking off the basketball court, and for once, Duncan made the game of basketball about him by holding the finger over everyone. He wanted everybody in the stands to realize they were watching the greatest power forwards to play the game of basketball, and reflect on the competent career he had. Everybody in the stands was left with no choice but to appreciate this one finger above everyone. The crowd finally reflected on what this one finger meant not only to Duncan, but to the game of basketball. They realized that the competitive nature in Duncan would leave a mindset of hard work and determination for future professional basketball players. Once they realized what Duncan meant to the game of basketball, they showed a sign of gratitude for this one finger. They started cheering and praising the finger which would greatly impact the future of the game of basketball. Unfortunately for Duncan, he could no longer impact the game of basketball directly since he was retiring.

In this picture, Duncan was not only walking off the court and towards the locker room, he was walking towards something much more complex, retirement. The color surrounding Duncan was fading to black and usually the color black signifies an end to something. This color relates to Duncan’s career, because he was walking off the basketball court for the very last time. Duncan seemed to be at the very front of the blackness. The farther back someone looks at the picture, the darker it gets. Even though Duncan was walking towards the back where it was mostly black, he was clearly visible. This shows how much of an impact he had on the game of basketball. Even when he was walking to the end of his career, people are still able to remember him. Another scenario would be to imagine if Duncan was not impactful to the game of basketball. Instead of being visible in the front of the picture, he would have been towards the back of the picture where he would have been hard to see. Duncan would have retired, but people would not have been able to see him and remember what he meant to the game. Since he was still clear in the picture, people can easily remember the impact he had, therefore, he was still able to impact the game of basketball indirectly. For someone to still impact the game of basketball after they have retired is unusual. Witnessing a unique impact like Duncan’s only comes around once in a lifetime. Duncan was able to achieve this by taking his legacy in a different direction than most professional basketball players.

Lastly, the picture shows a similarity of the people in crowd facing the same direction. Unlike the crowd, Duncan was facing the opposite direction. This goes to show the uniqueness and diversity of his legacy that he wanted to leave. Even though the crowd consist of fans, they can also resemble other current and past professional basketball players and their legacy they wanted to leave. They all wanted to take their legacy and strived to achieve the same thing. They all wanted to become rich and famous. Then notice Duncan’s direction. He was facing the other side that the majority of current and past professional basketball players did not face. Duncan’s legacy was unique, because he faced a different direction than other professional basketball players. Duncan did not focus on the goals of other basketball players. He strived for something else that did not include becoming rich and famous. He played the game of basketball out of heart and desire to be the best power forward possible. This mindset allowed him to be known as the greatest power forward to play in the National Basketball Association. 

Duncan undoubtedly had a hall of fame career. Over the course of his 19-year career he accumulated various awards. He was not just a five-time champion who only cared about his stats. He was unselfish and team oriented making him the ideal teammate. As his coach put it, Duncan would do anything to win. He would make the sacrifice to take less money in order to keep or bring in key players to help the Spurs win. He was willing to stay after practice to work with players, and from time to time he would invite them over to his house to have a paintball tournament. In a sport where many players get attention off the basketball court as they do on the court, Duncan did not. These are all things that Duncan did season after season which eventually led him to winning the teammate of the year award in 2015. He played basketball for the love of the game, tough competition, and his teammates. Duncan played basketball in an era that went against his views where it was about an individual. Duncan knew it was never just about him, and he wanted to leave his mark on the game by making basketball about the entire team and letting everyone know the he was the greatest power forward to play in basketball.

