What a difference a year has made in the life of Tim Duncan. This time last year the San Antonio Spurs Hall of Fame bound forward was in the midst of a bitter divorce from his college sweetheart and mother of his two young children in which she even openly insinuated she thought the perennial NBA All-Star might be gay.

Tim Duncan's Heat prediction comes true

But after the Spurs bashed the Miami Heat Sunday night for the third straight game, Duncan basked in the limelight, his fifth NBA title in his hands and his new, former reality TV star girlfriend Vanessa Macias at his side.

"It makes last year OK," Duncan told ESPN after the game in referring to the seven-game series the Spurs dropped to their Eastern Conference rivals back then.

It's true, Duncan could have just as easily been talking about his off-court woes in what now must seem like a lifetime ago. So contentious did divorce proceedings from Amy Duncan become back then that lawyers for Duncan admitted the NBA veteran had long suspected his wife of cheating on him and once hired a private investigator to follow her.

Tim Duncan's bitter divorce

But again, that all seemed like ancient history on Sunday night as Duncan further solidified himself among the the greatest big men to ever play the game.

"Very special," Duncan said of the Spurs dominance. "To do it at home, to do it with my kids and my family and my friends here made it so much more special. Just a great experience, and a great experience for them. For whatever reason, it is sweeter than any other, whether it be because of the time frame, because I'm coming towards the end of my career... all of those things make it that much more special."