NBA: The 30 best trios in league history

Best trios in NBA history: 1. Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker

• Duncan: 17.7 ppg, 10.4 rpg, 2.1 bpg
• Parker: 17.1 ppg, 6 apg
• Ginobili: 14 ppg, 4 apg
• Finals record: 3-1
• Time together: 2003-2016

For whatever reason, NBA trios that have accomplished some extraordinary things, don’t stick together for a long time. They often go their separate ways after a bit of success and leave fans wondering what could’ve been if they simply stuck together longer.

In the case of the San Antonio Spurs, they bucked that trend entirely.

For 14 years, the Spurs had the same three players anchor them night in and night out. Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker. Throughout their time together, the Spurs pumped out winning record after winning record. Not once, did the Spurs miss the playoffs. They were also consistently rated amongst the league’s best on the defensive side of the ball.

As you’ve come to realize on this list, we’ve had trios that put up otherworldly numbers. These three, on the other hand, were stellar but not spectacular. Duncan poured in 17.7 points a night, Parked chipped in with 17.1 and Ginobili, their super sixth man, averaged 14 points per game.

While they didn’t have a 20 point scorer on average, no other trio in NBA history has won more games than the 575 that these three have managed to win. Also, their win percentage during their run, blew the competition away. By winning 71.6% of their regular-season games, the Spurs were far and away better than the second-best team on that list, the Dallas Mavericks as they checked in with a win percentage of 64.3%.

They combined for four titles and made over 20 All-Star games and not to mention, countless All-NBA teams. There were never any egos with any of them. Duncan started off as the team’s best player and nabbed several MVP awards and Finals MVPs along the way. He had absolutely no issue with passing the baton to Parker, as he became the team’s best player in the late 2000s. Ginobili was never considered the best player for the Spurs, but he was their unquestioned closer as the ball was often in his hands when things got tight.

We can go on and on about how great these three were together but to sum it all up, they were the best trio in NBA history.