Duncan Has Olympic Concerns

San Antonio Spur forward Tim Duncan, who said he would play for the U.S. at the Athens Olympics, acknowledged that last week’s bombings in Athens have made him think about safety issues.

“With everything going on it’s a little scary,” he said. “But at the same time, you have to hope that USA Basketball is doing their best to make us safe once we get over there. I’m confident in their ability in what they do, and they wouldn’t put us in a situation where we’re in harm’s way. Hopefully when we’re there, we’ll be safe and have a great Olympics.”

Duncan was then asked if U.S. athletes were at greater risk than other athletes.

“You’d have to imagine so, but I would hope not,” he said.

Duncan said in March he would postpone an Olympic decision until after the season, but he moved quickly to add his name to the list after it became apparent in recent weeks that Kobe Bryant, Vince Carter, Kevin Garnett and Jason Kidd would probably not play in Athens.

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Reserve swingman Devin Brown, plucked from obscurity by the Spurs out of their backyard, didn’t have nearly the same impact Tuesday in Game 4 as he did in Game 3, but he continued to live the local-kid-makes-good story.

Brown, who played four seasons at the University of Texas San Antonio, was undrafted in 2002 after becoming the Roadrunners’ career scoring leader. He played seven games for the Spurs last season, was released, and played three games for the Denver Nuggets before again being waived.

The Spurs brought him back this season, where he averaged four points and 10.8 minutes in 58 regular-season games.

“He didn’t go to a big-time school basketball-wise and a lot of guys never get over that,” Spur Coach Gregg Popovich said. “He’s improved to the point where he’s a legit NBA player. We can put him on the floor and he’s been very helpful for us.” Brown followed his 16-point, seven-rebound effort in Game 3 with a scoreless Game 4.

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The Spur locker room was open for media interviews 90 minutes before Tuesday’s game, as mandated by the NBA, but nobody was there to talk.

Turns out a Spur team bus was delayed almost 20 minutes because of traffic.

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The Spurs’ 17-game winning streak was halted Sunday in Game 3, but another one is still going. The Spurs haven’t lost a home game since March 1, winning 17 consecutive times at SBC Center.