predicted how far the Spurs would fall during the 1996–97 season, especially with the signing of Dominique Wilkins. Robinson missed the first month of the season due to a back injury. He returned in December, but played only six games before a broken foot sidelined him for the rest of the season. Elliott also missed more than half the season due to injury. Forward Chuck Person would miss the entire season with a back injury. Without Robinson and Elliott, the Spurs were a rudderless team. The lone bright spot was Wilkins, leading the team in scoring with an average of 18.2 points per game. The Spurs ended the season with a 20–62 record, the worst in franchise history—and the last time they missed the playoffs until the 2019–20 season. Hill only lasted 18 games as coach that season, eventually being fired and replaced by general manager Gregg Popovich, who had also served a stint under Brown as an assistant coach. Wilkins would play his lone season in 1996–97 for San Antonio, knowing his minutes and playing time would greatly diminish next season. As disastrous as the 1996–97 season was for the Spurs, the off-season proved to be the opposite. With the third-worst record in the league, the Spurs won the NBA draft lottery, which gave them the top pick in the 1997 draft. The Spurs used their pick to select Wake Forest product and consensus All-American Tim Duncan. 1997–2016: The Tim Duncan era 1997–2003: The "Twin Towers" Paired together, the 7'1" Robinson and the 6'11" Duncan became known as the Twin Towers. The Twin Towers played together for the Spurs from 1997 to 2003. Both Robinson and Duncan were skilled offensive players, and the Twin Towers also anchored the Spurs' formidable defense. The duo helped lead the team to NBA championships in 1999 and 2003. Duncan quickly emerged as a dominant force in the NBA during the 1997–98 season, averaging 21.1 points and 11.9 rebounds per game as a power forward. He was named First Team All-NBA while winning Rookie of the Year honors. The team ended up at 56–26, breaking their own record from 1989 to 1990 for the biggest single-season improvement for wins, but once again lost to the Jazz in the Western Conference semi-finals. While both Duncan and Robinson played low-post roles, the two seamlessly meshed on the court. With a healthy Robinson and Duncan and the