duncan228
11-04-2008, 11:52 PM
'World' championship bugs Popovich (http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/World_championship_bugs_Popovich.html)
By Mike Monroe
The subject was defense, Gregg Popovich's favorite topic when it comes to basketball.
Or is it?
On a night when nationalism took center stage in America, Popovich segued from the importance of defense to NBA championship teams to the arrogance of calling the NBA title the world championship.
“The Celtics,” Popovich said, “were a great defensive team last year; Detroit was a great defender when they won it. When we've won, we've been first or second or third in all those defensive categories, and Miami was the same when they won it.
“If you're going to get an NBA championship, that's where you've got to go.”
Then, Popovich got on a rant about the importance of international competition.
“Notice,” he said, “I didn't say world championship. There's no such thing for these teams, although many haven't figured that out yet.
“Did any of us who won a championship play anybody in Spain or Russia or Italy, or any other country, other than the United States?
“I don't know why it's called the (baseball) World Series, and I don't know why they call (the NBA title) the World Championship. I never have gotten it. I still don't get it, but people continue to do it. One would think either stubbornness, or hubris, or something like that had something to do with it. But in these days, when things are so obvious, it's remarkable to me that people still can't figure that out.”
Stacked up: Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle acknowledged he is having a problem finding playing time for veteran Jerry Stackhouse, now in his 14th season.
Stackhouse didn't play at all in the Mavericks' loss to the Cavaliers on Monday night.
“He's a pro, and he's still a darn good player,” Carlisle said before Tuesday's game. “In an effort to sort things out, he gets a DNP last night. It's tough, and it's tough for me, too. But he and I talked about this a couple days ago. He's going to do the right thing for the team. He could very well be back in there tonight. He knows he's going to have to be ready, and he will be.”
Indeed, Stackhouse played 18 minutes but only scored three points in Dallas' 98-81 victory.
“I know he's got a lot of basketball left,” Carlisle said, “and I'm going to do all I can to get him going offensively when he's out there, and we'll just go from here.”
Tolliver returns: Rookie forward Anthony Tolliver was back with the Spurs for the game after his excused absence following the death of his mother. On the inactive list, he sat behind the bench with injured teammates Manu Ginobili and Ian Mahinmi.
By Mike Monroe
The subject was defense, Gregg Popovich's favorite topic when it comes to basketball.
Or is it?
On a night when nationalism took center stage in America, Popovich segued from the importance of defense to NBA championship teams to the arrogance of calling the NBA title the world championship.
“The Celtics,” Popovich said, “were a great defensive team last year; Detroit was a great defender when they won it. When we've won, we've been first or second or third in all those defensive categories, and Miami was the same when they won it.
“If you're going to get an NBA championship, that's where you've got to go.”
Then, Popovich got on a rant about the importance of international competition.
“Notice,” he said, “I didn't say world championship. There's no such thing for these teams, although many haven't figured that out yet.
“Did any of us who won a championship play anybody in Spain or Russia or Italy, or any other country, other than the United States?
“I don't know why it's called the (baseball) World Series, and I don't know why they call (the NBA title) the World Championship. I never have gotten it. I still don't get it, but people continue to do it. One would think either stubbornness, or hubris, or something like that had something to do with it. But in these days, when things are so obvious, it's remarkable to me that people still can't figure that out.”
Stacked up: Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle acknowledged he is having a problem finding playing time for veteran Jerry Stackhouse, now in his 14th season.
Stackhouse didn't play at all in the Mavericks' loss to the Cavaliers on Monday night.
“He's a pro, and he's still a darn good player,” Carlisle said before Tuesday's game. “In an effort to sort things out, he gets a DNP last night. It's tough, and it's tough for me, too. But he and I talked about this a couple days ago. He's going to do the right thing for the team. He could very well be back in there tonight. He knows he's going to have to be ready, and he will be.”
Indeed, Stackhouse played 18 minutes but only scored three points in Dallas' 98-81 victory.
“I know he's got a lot of basketball left,” Carlisle said, “and I'm going to do all I can to get him going offensively when he's out there, and we'll just go from here.”
Tolliver returns: Rookie forward Anthony Tolliver was back with the Spurs for the game after his excused absence following the death of his mother. On the inactive list, he sat behind the bench with injured teammates Manu Ginobili and Ian Mahinmi.