Robinson’s Back Against Wall

David Robinson has heard the whispers throughout his career, that he’s not tough enough, not inspired enough, not gritty enough.

And now comes another round of questions, as he watches again from the bench in street clothes while his teammates struggle to make up for his absence.

Robinson has a nerve problem in his lower back from a herniated disk that limited him to seven minutes in the Spurs’ previous playoff series against Seattle.

The pain has spread all the way down to his right ankle.

“The ankle feels a little better,” Robinson said. “I guess the doctors are worried about me flipping my ankle and tearing it up, but it’s starting to get stronger.”

So much so that Robinson had a flicker of hope Saturday that he would be able to play in Sunday’s series opener against the Lakers.

But that hope quickly flickered out.

“One minute I feel like I’m ready,” Robinson said, “the next minute, no way.”

Robinson was on the court shooting jumpers nearly two hours before game time, but it had already been determined that he wouldn’t play. So he sits on the bench and waits.

Spur Coach Gregg Popovich said there’s nothing doctors can do about Robinson’s health. “Playing with pain is no problem for this guy, the leg is just not working,” Popovich said. “The nerve is going to heal on its own time.”

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Malik Rose figured it was a reasonable question. The first time, the second and maybe even the third.

But after awhile, he began to roll his eyes as interviewer after interviewer asked the same thing: With Shaquille O’Neal and then Kobe Bryant out for a stretch with injuries, did he feel the Spurs let an opportunity slip away?

“Deja vu,” Rose finally responded when asked the question again.

And finally, he told a television reporter who innocently tried the same angle, “This is the last time I will answer that question.”

Maybe so, but it is a question the Spurs probably were asking themselves long into the night.

Even Rose had to admit that the Spurs missed a chance. Especially after the Lakers shot only 39% from the field.

“I think we did,” he said. “They’re not going to shoot that bad [in Game 2] Tuesday.”

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Tim Duncan’s 12 rebounds in the first quarter were a franchise postseason record. The old mark was 10 by Robinson in the first quarter of a 1996 playoff game against the Phoenix Suns.