Tim Duncan refused to speak to Tony Parker during rookie year

Tim Duncan Silent Treatment

Interesting article about the Spurs and their "earn the right to be here" mentality.

quote:

---

"He didn't talk to me for a whole year," Parker said after practice Monday, reflecting on his rookie season in 2001-02 when it wasn't just a French-English language barrier that wedged a gap between the two. "It was kind of weird coming from France and you have your superstar player that doesn't talk to you as a point guard, it's kind of tough, you know? Because you're supposed to talk to everybody.

---

quote:

---

Parker said that he finally felt comfortable voicing his opinion to Duncan following their first championship together in 2003 and still fondly remembers the first conversation they had. "I was very happy," Parker said. "I remember I was very happy that he finally talked to me. I was like, 'Maybe I can stay in this team.'

---

I knew Tim Duncan was a pretty quiet dude but damn. I can see Timmy not embracing a rookie and not becoming best friends with a new guy, but to not say a word to him for an entire year? It's hard to imagine a small group of athletes spending so many hours in practice, on flights, on the court, waiting in airports, chilling in hotels and two of them never having a conversation. I bet that was a weird dynamic. You would think a forward would have to speak to his point guard at some point.

I have people at my job that I'm not necessarily friends with but if I'm alone in the copy room or driving to the airport with, I'll make polite chit-chat. And if they are on the same team with me, I don't see how we could not have a conversation at least once over the span of a year.