2001–02 San Antonio Spurs season

The 2001–02 San Antonio Spurs season was the 26th season for the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association, their 29th season in San Antonio, Texas, and their 35th season as a franchise. During the off-season, the Spurs acquired Steve Smith from the Portland Trail Blazers, and signed free agents Bruce Bowen, second-year guard Stephen Jackson, and Charles Smith, and also drafted point guard, and French basketball star Tony Parker with the 28th overall pick in the 2001 NBA draft. This was also the Spurs' last season at the Alamodome, as they moved into the brand new SBC Center the next season.

The Spurs won 20 of their first 24 games of the regular season, after a ten-game winning streak in December, held a 31–17 record at the All-Star break, then posted a 13-game winning streak in March and won their final nine games of the season, finishing in first place in the Midwest Division with a 58–24 record, and earning the second seed in the Western Conference.

Tim Duncan averaged 25.5 points, 12.7 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game, as he was named the NBA Most Valuable Player of the Year, joining David Robinson as the only Spurs to win the award; he was also named to the All-NBA First Team, and to the NBA All-Defensive First Team. In addition, Robinson averaged 12.2 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game, while Steve Smith contributed 11.6 points per game, and led the Spurs with 116 three-point field goals while shooting .472 in three-point field-goal percentage, and Parker provided the team with 9.2 points and 4.3 assists per game, and was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team. Meanwhile, Malik Rose averaged 9.4 points and 6.0 rebounds per game, Antonio Daniels provided with 9.2 points per game, and Charles Smith contributed 7.4 points per game, Bowen contributed 7.0 points per game, and was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team, Terry Porter provided with 5.5 points and 2.8 assists per game, and Danny Ferry averaged 4.6 points per game.

During the NBA All-Star weekend at the First Union Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Duncan was selected for the 2002 NBA All-Star Game, as a member of the Western Conference All-Star team. Meanwhile, Steve Smith participated in the NBA Three-Point Shootout, and Parker was selected for the NBA Rookie Challenge Game, as a member of the Rookies team. Rose finished in fourth place in Sixth Man of the Year voting.

In the Western Conference First Round of the 2002 NBA playoffs, the Spurs faced off against the 7th–seeded Seattle SuperSonics, a team that featured All-Star guard Gary Payton, Rashard Lewis and Brent Barry. The Spurs won Game 1 over the SuperSonics at home, 110–89 at the Alamodome, but then lost Game 2 at home, 98–90 as the SuperSonics evened the series. The Spurs managed to win Game 3 over the SuperSonics on the road, 102–75 at the KeyArena at Seattle Center, before losing Game 4 on the road, 91–79. With the series tied at 2–2, the Spurs won Game 5 over the SuperSonics at the Alamodome, 101–78 to win in a hard-fought five-game series.

In the Western Conference Semi-finals, and for the second consecutive year, the team faced off against the 3rd–seeded, and 2-time defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers, who were led by the trio of All-Star center Shaquille O'Neal, All-Star guard Kobe Bryant, and Derek Fisher. Despite both teams finishing with the same regular-season record, and the Spurs winning the Midwest Division title, the Lakers had home-court advantage in the series. The Spurs lost Game 1 to the Lakers on the road, 86–80 at the Staples Center, but managed to win Game 2 on the road, 88–85 to even the series. However, the Spurs lost the next two games at home at the Alamodome, and then lost Game 5 to the Lakers at the Staples Center, 93–87, thus losing the series in five games. The Lakers would go on to defeat the New Jersey Nets in a four-game sweep in the 2002 NBA Finals, winning their third consecutive NBA championship.

The Spurs led the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 906,390 at the Alamodome during the regular season. Following the season, Daniels and Charles Smith were both traded to the Portland Trail Blazers, and Porter retired after seventeen seasons in the NBA.