Other Reactions to Popovich

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Gregg Popovich’s decision not to play his stars against Denver has drawn mixed reaction from baskstball fans.

  • One of our readers, Jimbo, questions the logic: “I’m not a fan of this move Popovich pulled, especially since it cost us the tie-breaker against a Western Conference rival. But doing this on a regular basis will mean that we can kiss a top seeding goodbye – in this super-competitive Western Conference, home court will count for much. And also, I don’t think we want to let go of the #2 seed and face the risk of facing the Lakers in the second round.”
  • Matthew Powell, of Pounding the Rock,  sees the coaching decision as a disrespectful gesture toward David Stern and his scheduling cronies:

In case you don’t know what this is all about, let me fill you in.  The Spurs beat Golden State in OT late Monday night.  They played again Tuesday in Denver, and Pop benched their three best players; Duncan, Ginobili and Parker all sat out.  Ginobili’s absence was loosely linked to a hip contusion.  Pop didn’t even use fake decorum for his other two stars, saying:

“Parker makes the All-Star team, becomes hard to deal with, so we’re going to sit him and teach him a lesson,” Popovich joked. “Duncan says he wants to renegotiate his contract, so I said, ‘Sit, I’m not talking to you.’ “

Jesus, Pop.  Why didn’t you just say “Hey Sterny, you can bite me!”

This whole charade looks awful.  I’m sure Pop will pull it off, but I doubt David Stern forgets it.  The Nuggets definitely won’t.  Professional athletes look for any reason to play the disrespect card, and Pop basically handed Denver a deck full of them.

  • Powell and Jimbo share the same concerns about home court advantage, and Powell backs himself up with a few noteworthy stats: “Pop loves to downplay home court advantage in the playoffs.  I know I’m pointing out the obvious, but HCA is hugely important in the playoffs.  Even for the Spurs.  Over the past six playoffs, the Spurs are 42-13 at home and 26-25 on the road.  During the past three championship years they won a total of two series in which they did not have HCA.  Who did they beat?  Phoenix, both times.  Phoenix!  A team entirely designed to lose to the Spurs in the playoffs.”
  • Pat Cassidy of Dime wonders if the Spurs didn’t cheat NBA fans: “Watching the Spurs might be the equivalent of watching paint dry, but that’s still not right. There are probably lots of kids in Denver who for whatever reason love Tim Duncan and Tony Parker and their parents swallowed the $500 or so it costs to take a family to an NBA game and when they get there, Popovich decides he’s sitting all of his stars? Not cool. The NBA is an entertainment product. People pay exorbitant amounts of money to watch that product. Unless those guys are physically unable to perform, they have to play.”

“If Ginobili was injured, that’s one thing. But my question is this: why bother fighting so hard for an overtime victory if you’re basically going to concede the game the following night by sitting all of your best players?”

“It’s not like these back-to-backs are followed by two more the day after tomorrow or something. The Spurs, in fact, have five days until their next game — a Sunday matinee against the Celtics. So what appears to have happened is, with Ginobili already sidelined, Popovich didn’t think his team could win in Denver anyway, so he basically said “screw it,” conceded the game, and gave his stars the night off.”

  • Skeets:


Ep. 385: Torn Labrums, Broken Arms And Hip Contusions from The Basketball Jones on Vimeo.

  • Roundball Mining Company reads between the lines and sees a little voodoo: “I guess they do not consider the Nuggets to be much of a threat.  Then again, I could see Popovich playing mind games with the Nuggets where should the two teams face off in the post season both teams know that San Antonio pummeled Denver in the one game where Parker, Duncan and Manu all played.  Maybe that mental edge is worth preserving.”
  • And Henry Abbott tries to bring it all together: “Instead, he wants to win, and this is part of some master plan. So I’m OK with it. Arguably the best coach in the NBA is the one who is least wedded to having top players kill themselves game in and game out. That could be the ultimate proof that the NBA season is too long for its own good. However, here Popovich has surely offended those who bought expensive tickets to see the mighty Spurs, as well as fans of teams who hoped Denver would lose for playoff positioning reasons.”

Here’s the really weird part: The Spurs have four days off before playing in Boston on Sunday, and next week they get the All-Star break.

OK, now for the part I can understand: Duncan and Parker played 43 minutes and Ginobili played 35 in an overtime win in Golden State the night before. That game started at 7:30 p.m. Pacific Time; the one last night in Denver started at 6 p.m. Pacific, so the team only had 22½ hours between games and a very long flight; going Oakland to Denver is about as far-flung a back-to-back sa you’ll see. Throw in the altitude and it was going to be a very rough night for the Spurs’ three stars.

Popovich also manages the big picture as well as any coach in the league, which is why his teams always hit their peak in the spring. So you have to respect his track record in this department.

Nonetheless, this game in particular was an odd time to make this choice, as it could end up putting the Spurs on the road in the second round of the playoffs.

One other idle thought: I’m not sure if Spurs fans are upset by what happened last night. But I guarantee Blazers fans are.

  • http://spursinsight.blogspot.com/2009/02/hate-love-greg-popovich.html DartmouthFred

    If the Spurs were going to lose a player to injury, last night felt like it was the night. Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu overextended themselves on the court against the Warriors. With so many injuries occurring in the past week, Andrew Bynum, Jameer Nelson, and Chris Paul, perhaps Popovich felt it was our turn for some bad luck. Also, do not underestimate the message that he sent to the Nuggets. “Look, we know your record is good and everything, but you are the last team we are worried about. In fact, I’m going to bench my starters and give you this game. Your team is not even on our radar.” And what happened? Our bench came out and nearly won. How sick must the Nuggets have felt after that game? A HUGE slap in the face. By the way, Chauncey turned his ankle last night. I think Popovich may have dodged a bullet.

  • Will

    I think the HCA is overrated for the Spurs. Let’s look at the past 6 years (the ones with the Big 3, so that things are at least a bit comparable), 3 times won NBA championships (odd years), 3 times got eliminated in 2nd or 3rd round (even years).

    In 2003 the Spurs played all their 4 series at home. In 2005 and 2007 they played one series away (each time at Phoenix) and prevailed anyway.

    In 2004 lost in 2nd round at home (to LA). In 2006 lost in 2nd round at home (to Dallas). In 2008 won 2nd round away (at New Orleans) and lost 3rd away (at LA).

    So all in all in 3 winning seasons the Spurs won 2 series away. And in 3 losing seasons they got eliminated twice at home, and once away after winning a series away.

    Globally it doesn’t look like HCA makes a big difference, the Spurs can win away (2x Phoenix, 1x New Orleans) and lose at home (2x LA, 1x Dallas).

  • Trey

    Bottom line is this…Pop knows more about his team than any of us do. We can second guess all we want, but it is his team. He did what he thought was best for the team. I’m ok with that.

  • GMT

    I agree with DartmouthFred. This Nuggets team won’t threaten our chances at number 5, even with Billups. Now that I’m beyond the shock of Pop’s decision, I can really say it that it probably was one of the best decisions he could have made. Thank goodness for Pop’s premonitions!

  • rodney p stablehorn

    I really think the fact that the big 3 have been carrying such a big load lately was a big factor in Pop’s reasoning. Not because they need the rest (which they do), but because the other guys on the team are starting to stand around and watch. I remember the aggressive play of Hill, Mason and Bonner at the beginning of the season, and Ill bet Pop does too. This is especially obvious on the heels of the Warriors game where the big 3 generated 87 of the Spurs’ 110 points. The fact that the supporting cast kept it close is an indictment on the Nuggets, yes, but also an encouraging sign for the Spurs’ supporting cast. Its rodeo time and Pop wants to know what this team is made of.

  • Will

    Funny fact from ESPN: “This was just the third time since Manu Ginobili joined the the Spurs in 2002-03 that Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Ginobili have all missed the same game. The last time, on April 18, 2007, was also against the Nuggets.” (and we all know the end of the 2007 story)

  • Hollywood

    Getting bent about this is fairly idiotic. For most, it’s another reason to hate the Spurs, and for those people, they’re just looking for an excuse, so who cares?

    I don’t see how that quote by Pop shows a direct jab at Stern. Pop already thinks Stern is a jackass. Benching the 3 is about preserving health. Parker got injured earlier in the year after big minutes in an OT game. It isn’t surprising he felt the need to avoid that.

    Also, he knew the Spurs would get killed in this game so why not concede that? He knows the pulse of the team. They had a good run and it was most likely going to end.

    That this action pisses off the rest of the league is amusing.

    And someone fill me in why Portland is supposed to be mad?

  • http://www.48minutesofhell.com Graydon Gordian

    Portland would be mad because they are battling with the Nuggets for first place in the Northwest and handing Denver a win doesn’t help their cause.

  • ChillFAN

    Much ado about nothing. Blazers cant honestly say they expected a Spurs win. As a Spurs fan, it pains me to say this, but Pop didn’t like our odds, so he thought, let’s see the bench. The Nuggets may feel slighted, but this would have happened versus any team. And fans handing out home court advantage, much less the 2 and 3 spots to either of these teams is premature. Hopefully, the NBA won’t schedule the playoff Hornets-then Lakers nightmare again. If they do, Pop has a precedent.

  • Nico

    All I can say is we better win against the Celtics Pop.