Sheppard deflected Justin Brauns slap shot out of midair an

SAN ANTONIO -- Annual traditions are everywhere in San Antonio. Theres the way the famed Riverwalk is transformed into a sea of lights at holiday time. Fiesta Noche del Rio, a summerlong outdoor performance of song and dance that dates back more than half a century. A huge rodeo, taking over the city for about three weeks every winter. And of late, theres been the Tim Duncan Watch. Unlike the others, this is one San Antonioians dread. But if he goes out now, hell be going out as a champion -- for the fifth time. San Antonios 104-87 win over the Miami Heat in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Sunday night gave Duncan his fifth title, all with the Spurs. And throughout this series, speculation has been rampant that if the Spurs ended Miamis reign Duncan might finally feel like the time is right to end what will surely be a Hall of Fame career. "Amazing," Duncan said. "It makes last year OK." His first title was in 1999. Only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has a longer span between championships. "Its a very emotional time," Duncan said. When the 2011-12 season was threatened by a lockout, it was speculated that Duncan might have already played his last game. Hes certainly doesnt play for money anymore -- hes making about $10 million this season, a giant sum in the real world but well below market value by NBA standards -- and has always seemed to be a reluctant superstar. And then, every fall, Duncan shows up for training camp, the Spurs win a bunch of games, and the legacy just keeps growing. "I know hes got one more year on his contract, and he loves being with us, loves playing basketball," Spurs guard Tony Parker said. "Either way, whatever he decides, Ill support him. But if I have to choose, obviously, I would love him to keep going. I love playing with him." Its hard to find something in San Antonio more revered than the Spurs. "Go Spurs Go" signage hangs from what seems like every other building in the sprawling city. If someone is on the streets of San Antonio on game day and not wearing Spurs gear, chances are they live somewhere else. During the NBA Finals, its not uncommon for residents to strap Spurs flags onto their cars, drive through downtown and honk like crazy -- even on off days in the series. Duncan has never played for money anyplace else. Sunday was his 1,488th NBA game. Every one of them has been in a Spurs uniform. The only other players in NBA history to play that many games and never change teams: Utahs John Stockton and Indianas Reggie Miller. "He feels a responsibility to his teammates," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "He enjoys them. He wants to hang around as long as he can while hes useful and while hes having an impact on the game. He takes care of his body. He works out all summer long with a variety of different things, boxing, swimming. Hes very careful about what he puts in his body, so he does everything he can to maintain a level of play. "At some point," Popovich added, "that will stop." But when? Duncan insists he doesnt know. Its something he, Parker and Manu Ginobili -- the Spurs Big 3 -- have been hearing for years, that their demise and breakup is imminent. By now, they almost find it amusing. "Weve been on our last run for the last five or six years from how everyone wants to put it," Duncan said. "We show up every year, and we try to put together the best teams and the best runs possible because what people say doesnt matter to us. As I said, as long as we feel were being effective, were going to stay out here and were going to play. We feel like we can be effective, and we have been." Duncan is the 21st player in NBA history to win five rings with one team. Everyone else on that list played for the Lakers, Celtics or Bulls. That speaks to longevity and sustained greatness, which all factors in to the enormous legacy hell leave behind at some point. Again, though, thats not Duncans thinking. Not now. Not yet. First things first -- theres another parade coming to San Antonio. When the Spurs won the Western Conference title and earned their rematch shot with Miami, which won last years finals in a seven-game classic, Duncan vowed that San Antonio would win this time around. He was right. "This is the only one that counts right now," Duncan said. Custom San Diego Padres Jerseys . -- Those impatient for the Stanley Cup to return to Canada will have just one team to root for in the NHL playoffs -- the Montreal Canadiens. Craig Stammen Jersey . Van Slyke drove in a career-high four runs with two homers off struggling left-hander Tony Cingrani, and the Los Angeles Dodgers pulled away to a 6-2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Monday night, a rare comfortable win in their pitching-dominated series. http://www.padressale.com/padres-austin-hedges-jersey/ . The Tinkoff-Saxo rider was still dealing with the right shin he broke in a crash which ended his Tour de France on Stage 10. He hoped to defy his doctors and race in the home Grand Tour he won in 2008 and 2012, but he says there have been complications in his recovery. Fernando Tatis Jr. Jersey . -- Joe Thornton scored the tiebreaking goal with 5:39 left in regulation to help the San Jose Sharks overcome a two-goal deficit to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-3 on Thursday night. Trevor Hoffman Padres Jersey . Coach Jorge Sampaoli resisted naming any major surprises in the list published Tuesday at the site of Chiles football association. Chile is pinning its hopes on the recovery of Vidal.LOS ANGELES -- The puck was sitting underneath Sharks goalie Alex Stalock when Justin Williams whacked at his pads and the narrow space between them. Like a magic trick, the puck popped out behind Stalock in the San Jose net. While Sharks coach Todd McLellan decried the legality of the tiebreaking goal, the Los Angeles Kings celebrated their latest, greatest escape yet. Down 0-3 just a few days ago, the Kings squeezed through that minuscule opening and emerged in Game 7. Williams scored the go-ahead goal with 8:04 to play, and the Kings beat the Sharks 4-1 in Game 6 on Monday night, rallying all the way back from a daunting series deficit. Williams and Anze Kopitar each had two goals and an assist, and Jonathan Quick made 25 saves as the Kings became just the ninth team in NHL history to force a seventh game after losing the first three. "We certainly didnt want to go away quiet," Kopitar said. "Were only thinking about one more step now. Were going to have to play our best game of the series up there." Just three teams in NHL history have rallied from an 0-3 deficit to win a series, and Los Angeles has earned a shot to join them. The winner of the California rivals third playoff meeting in four years will face the top-seeded Anaheim Ducks in the second round. After watching three Kings goals and several violent scrums in the final minutes, Los Angeles fans roared with an intensity that likely hadnt been reached since the Kings Stanley Cup run two years ago, sending their team back to the Shark Tank on Wednesday night. A tie game turned when Williams whacked home Robyn Regehrs shot at Stalock, using the opportunistic scoring sense that has made the two-time Stanley Cup champion into a clutch playoff performer. "Maybe we got a break, maybe we didnt," Williams said. "But nobody blew the whistle." San Joses bench loudly protested the call, saying the puck should have been blown dead under Stalock, but it was upheld on video review. "We got cheated," McLellan said. "Simple as that. I was told that you could see the puck laying behind his feet the whole time." McLellan said the Sharks couldnt see the puck on video review. Kings coach Darryl Sutter thought replays showed the puck was loose. Kopitar followed with two goals 1:15 apart for the Kings, who have outscored San Jose 13-4 in the last three games after San Jose dominated the first three by a combined 17-8. Stalock stopped 26 shots in his first NHL playoff start, and James Sheppard scored on a double deflection in the second period for the spiraling Sharks.dddddddddddd. After utterly dominating the first two games, San Jose has scored just one goal against Quick in the last 128:24 in the series. "In my mind, if it gets to Game 7, it doesnt matter how it gets there," Sharks forward Logan Couture said. "It gets there, and youre going for one game. We played all year for the home ice. Im sure our building is going to be loud. Weve got to turn this thing around and win that game." McLellan changed starting goalies after Stanley Cup winner Antti Niemi was pulled from each of the last two losses. McLellan took a risk on Stalock, whose NHL experience consists of 27 regular-season games and 57 minutes of scoreless relief in this series. Drew Doughty had two assists for Los Angeles, which lost the first three games of the series in discouraging fashion before rallying with resounding victories at home in Game 4 and at the Shark Tank in Game 5 on Saturday night. Doughty set up the Kings first goal with a sharp pass to Williams, who has four goals in the Kings last two home games. San Jose got a 5-on-3 advantage for 1:38 early in the second period, but the Kings killed it off. The Sharks finally tied it moments after a third fruitless power play when Sheppard deflected Justin Brauns slap shot out of midair and off Regehr. After Williams go-ahead score, Kopitar got loose on a 2-on-1 rush with Williams, who set him up perfectly. Kopitar added a power-play goal. The Philadelphia Flyers are one of the three teams to accomplish what the Kings hope to do, rallying from three games down to beat Boston in 2010 with a roster including current Kings forwards Jeff Carter and Mike Richards. The Sharks played without key defenceman Marc-Edouard Vlasic, who left Game 5 early with an upper-body injury. The Canadian Olympic gold medallist was replaced by Matt Irwin, while streaky forward Marty Havlat also was in San Joses lineup for the first time in the series, replacing Mike Brown. NOTES: Los Angeles lost D Willie Mitchell to an undisclosed injury during the second period. ... The Sharks hadnt changed their starting goalie during the playoffs since 2001, when Miikka Kiprusoff took over for Evgeni Nabokov during a series. ... Vlasic had played in all 84 possible playoff games since joining the Sharks for the 2006-07 season. ' ' '