duncan228
01-15-2009, 02:14 PM
Lakers impress rival coach Gregg Popovich (http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-spw-lakerweb-spurs16-2009jan16,0,623296.story)
San Antonio gets the win, but the Spurs' coach comes away with an appreciation for what the Lakers are doing this season, as he credits Phil Jackson.
By Broderick Turner
Reporting from San Antonio -- His team won and yet San Antonio Coach Gregg Popovich still is impressed by what the Lakers are, what they have become and what they can be.
Popovich had heard so much about the Lakers, about their talent, depth and drive to win an NBA championship after losing to the Boston Celtics in the 2008 NBA Finals.
He credits Lakers Coach Phil Jackson for molding the Lakers into a determined group, a team focused on being NBA champions.
"The first thing you see is a team that believes," Popovich said. "Phil has got them to the point where they believe they're the best team in the league. They're a hungry team, so they are going to be more serious from the very beginning.
"In having not won in the Finals last year, they want to come in this year and make a statement early. I think that sort of confidence and that edge is there. Where it had to be sort of learned and groomed and established last year, they came in with it this year. So I think that's a little bit different for them."
The Lakers added Pau Gasol to the mix last season in February but lost Andrew Bynum and Trevor Ariza to injuries.
Now Bynum and Ariza are back, healthy and productive.
That's something not lost on Popovich.
"I think they are just jelling as a group, continuing to get better and better as a group," Popovich said. "Offensively, they know each other very well. Defensively, that's always the toughest part, getting everybody to commit defensively. And I think as the year continues, that's their emphasis obviously. They'll become more and more consistent in that area, because everybody is on them about it all the time."
Popovich laughed, knowing that the media and Lakers fans have looked for holes, for stories about the Lakers.
He even acknowledged that Jackson has used the media to get his point across to his players at times.
"He has a great way of getting a message to a player through you guys," Popovich said, smiling, noting that he has done the same. "He's the best at that, that's for sure. You guys coach those guys for him."
The Spurs and Lakers have been rivals over the last 10 years, and Wednesday night's game did nothing to dispel that.
The Spurs have won four NBA championships during that span (1999, 2003, '05 and '07) and the Lakers have won three (2000, '01 and '02).
They have met in the playoffs six times in the last 10 years, with the Lakers having won the series four times, including a 4-1 series win over the Spurs in the 2008 Western Conference finals.
Wednesday night's game was more of the same tense moments.
In a seesaw game of big shots and big plays, the Spurs had to do all they could to pull out a 112-111 victory over the Lakers at the AT&T Center.
"We really look forward to these games," Popovich said. "I think the guys respect each other. We've beaten each other up a lot over the years and the two teams have won a pretty good number of championships, maybe more than any other two. So they respect each other, they go at each other hard and enjoy the victories over each other. But I think it's all done in a really great way."
San Antonio gets the win, but the Spurs' coach comes away with an appreciation for what the Lakers are doing this season, as he credits Phil Jackson.
By Broderick Turner
Reporting from San Antonio -- His team won and yet San Antonio Coach Gregg Popovich still is impressed by what the Lakers are, what they have become and what they can be.
Popovich had heard so much about the Lakers, about their talent, depth and drive to win an NBA championship after losing to the Boston Celtics in the 2008 NBA Finals.
He credits Lakers Coach Phil Jackson for molding the Lakers into a determined group, a team focused on being NBA champions.
"The first thing you see is a team that believes," Popovich said. "Phil has got them to the point where they believe they're the best team in the league. They're a hungry team, so they are going to be more serious from the very beginning.
"In having not won in the Finals last year, they want to come in this year and make a statement early. I think that sort of confidence and that edge is there. Where it had to be sort of learned and groomed and established last year, they came in with it this year. So I think that's a little bit different for them."
The Lakers added Pau Gasol to the mix last season in February but lost Andrew Bynum and Trevor Ariza to injuries.
Now Bynum and Ariza are back, healthy and productive.
That's something not lost on Popovich.
"I think they are just jelling as a group, continuing to get better and better as a group," Popovich said. "Offensively, they know each other very well. Defensively, that's always the toughest part, getting everybody to commit defensively. And I think as the year continues, that's their emphasis obviously. They'll become more and more consistent in that area, because everybody is on them about it all the time."
Popovich laughed, knowing that the media and Lakers fans have looked for holes, for stories about the Lakers.
He even acknowledged that Jackson has used the media to get his point across to his players at times.
"He has a great way of getting a message to a player through you guys," Popovich said, smiling, noting that he has done the same. "He's the best at that, that's for sure. You guys coach those guys for him."
The Spurs and Lakers have been rivals over the last 10 years, and Wednesday night's game did nothing to dispel that.
The Spurs have won four NBA championships during that span (1999, 2003, '05 and '07) and the Lakers have won three (2000, '01 and '02).
They have met in the playoffs six times in the last 10 years, with the Lakers having won the series four times, including a 4-1 series win over the Spurs in the 2008 Western Conference finals.
Wednesday night's game was more of the same tense moments.
In a seesaw game of big shots and big plays, the Spurs had to do all they could to pull out a 112-111 victory over the Lakers at the AT&T Center.
"We really look forward to these games," Popovich said. "I think the guys respect each other. We've beaten each other up a lot over the years and the two teams have won a pretty good number of championships, maybe more than any other two. So they respect each other, they go at each other hard and enjoy the victories over each other. But I think it's all done in a really great way."