It has been widely assumed that Tim Duncan will retire when his contract expires at the end of this season, but San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich isn't convinced.
"No matter how (the season) ends, I think Timmy is going to look at (retirement) again. And if you ask me, my guess is that he'll go for another one because he has been so consistent this season" Popovich told USA TODAY Sports' Sam Amick.
"It's just consistent stuff: another double-double, over and over and over again. Because of that, I think in his mind that if it continues through the rest of the year, I think he'll say, 'I'm going to go another year and see what happens,'" Popovich said.
Duncan is averaging 14.5 points, 10 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.9 blocks and a steal in his 18th season, and he was recently named to his 15th Western Conference All-Star team.
The 38-year-old could also be in the running for the Defensive Player of the Year award.
In other words, Duncan remains a very effective player for a still contending Spurs team, a tough fact to walk away from.
"What he has told me is that the minute he feels like he's a hindrance to his team or he's not on the positive end or helping him, he's going to walk right off the court. It might be during the third quarter of a game," Popovich said.
"He's not going to hang on to finish a contract or make the money or have the notoriety that you know he doesn't give a (expletive) about," the reigning Coach of the Year added. "So the way he's playing now, he's going to look in the mirror and say, 'Hey, I'm doing all right.'"
