The San Antonio Spurs are back in the NBA Finals for a fifth time in franchise history as is Tim Duncan.

Duncan already has quite the resume winning four NBA titles and three NBA Finals MVP trophies and now will have a shot at adding the elusive fifth championship to his illustrious NBA career.

Prior to Game 3 in the Western Conference Finals, Duncan spoke on what it means to reach the NBA Finals again, how focused he is on the prize, how his age is a non-factor and more.

Needless to say, Duncan wants title No. 5 badly.

The San Antonio Spurs are the 2013 Western Conference Champs after sweeping the Memphis Grizzlies last night 93-86 and will now advance to the NBA Finals.

After the game, the Spurs hammed it up for the cameras and took lots of photos for fans to feel apart of the celebration.

Here is a sample of some of the photos from the locker room celebration and the fans turning out to welcome back their basketball heroes early this morning.

After watching his top-rated defense continue to be shredded for four straight games against San Antonio Spurs point guard Tony Parker, Memphis Grizzlies head coach Lionel Hollins had a clear statement regarding Parker.

“He was outstanding the whole series.”

Overtime wasn’t needed Monday, but the Spurs and Grizzlies again delivered blows to each other as they battled in a tight contest. However, Parker was just too much for the Grizzlies with his 37 points on 15-of-21 shooting, making all of his free throws, and passing for six assists.

“They deserve to move on and I wish them the best of luck,” continued Hollins after the game of the Spurs.

San Antonio Spurs' Manu Ginobili's passing skills always seem to amaze his fans and his passes seem to come without much thinking. Ginobili's quick touch pass between Tayshaun Prince's legs to Cory Joseph is an example of Manu's playmaking skills that come easy to the Argentinian shooting guard. This play was made during transition in the first quarter of Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals.

Check out the video below.

According to USA Today, the Sacramento Kings are looking at San Antonio Spurs GM R.C. Buford, among others, to be the next team President.

According to two people with knowledge of the situation, Ranadive has begun the process of finding a replacement for Kings President Geoff Petrie and is considering San Antonio Spurs President R.C. Buford, Golden State Warriors assistant general manager Travis Schlenk, and Memphis Grizzlies general manager Chris Wallace. Former Indiana Pacers general manager David Morway may also receive consideration, and Ranadive's internal list is not thought to be limited to this group.

Buford has been courted numerous time in the past from other team looking at him to fill front office spots but prying him away from the Spurs would be a tall task. He has been an integral part of making the franchise into what it is now, loyal to Gregg Popovich and is quite comfortable in his current position with San Antonio.

Kevin and Marcus of MemphiSport Live (WHBQ in Memphis) invited me as a guest on their show Saturday afternoon to talk about "tablegate" and my editorial on the topic.

They asked about my initial thoughts when it was confirmed, made a case for how Paul McCartney could get a table and wished San Antonio Spurs' Tony Parker had opted for some Memphis BBQ that might've slowed him up a bit entering Game 3.

Thanks to Kevin and Marcus for having me on to set a few things straight.

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Note: Since this is hopefully the last time this topic is brought up on Project Spurs, I did want to point out an excellent comment from a Memphis resident on the original post. The commenter, Dallas Lavergne made some great points that I think are right on the mark.

Also Tony Parker has also denied that he was denied service at said restaurant.

The San Antonio Spurs (11-2) will look to sweep their Western Conference Finals series with the Memphis Grizzlies (8-6) tonight in Game 4 in Memphis. 

The Spurs are coming off a thrilling 104-93 overtime win in Game 3 at the FedExForum.  The Spurs were down as much as 18 points in the first quarter but rallied in the second quarter with an 11-2 run to cut the gap to four at halftime. In the overtime period, San Antonio outscored Memphis 18-7 in extra time to take a 3-0 lead in the series. Tim Duncan led the team with 24 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocks. Tony Parker finished with 26 points and 5 assists while Manu Ginobili had 19 points off the bench. Mike Conley led the Grizzlies with 20 points and 5 steals.

And as the Spurs look to sweep the Grizzlies out of the playoffs and make a return to the NBA Finals for a fifth time, here are five things to watch during tonight's contest:

• The Spurs have been up 3-0 in 10 playoff series under coach Gregg Popovich. Seven of those series ended up in a sweep while the other three series went five games (via woai.com).

• The Spurs are 4-0 when scoring 100 points of more on the road in the postseason.

With the San Antonio Spurs one win away from the NBA Finals, Jose Grijalva joins me on the Spurscast to talk about what the team has been doing right against the Memphis Grizzlies.

We also discuss playing time during the postseason and whether or not Nando De Colo has a right to be upset about the lack of playing time. 

Plus, Jose and I debate who would be a better Finals opponent for the Spurs, the Heat or the Pacers.

The Spurscast. The original Spurs podcast.

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Music: Red Hot Chili Peppers - Dani California