"Time went by, and the minutes kept coming, then came overtime. By the end of a much-needed 101-95 Spurs victory Wednesday, Tim Duncan was sweating into his 73rd minute in two nights, logging the kind of playing time that, at age 35, had become a faded memory of younger era.

Asked afterward if he could give another 35 minutes today, if the schedule required it, Duncan answered with a mix of wry wit and realism.

"I think I could," he said. "But my body might think differently."

Duncan was never one for gaudy numbers or flashy statistics, and Father Time has robbed him of what little athleticism Mother Nature gave him. Even his signature banker is no longer automatic."