jcrod
04-08-2005, 12:06 PM
Well lets just forget about yesterday's loss.
Pop star
Without Duncan, Spurs getting by on Popovich's guile
Link (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2005/writers/chris_mannix/04/07/spurs/index.html)
For most teams, the loss of their star player would spell almost certain doom. The focal point of the offense, the leader of the defense and the heart and soul of the locker room goes down for the rest of the season? How many teams could bounce back from that?
The T'wolves without Kevin Garnett? They're battling the Hawks for the top pick. The Lakers without Kobe Bryant? We've seen how bad they have been with King Kobe; without him they're the equivalent of a top-shelf CBA team.
So how has San Antonio, which lost MVP Tim Duncan for the rest of the regular season, managed to stay afloat? For the Spurs, it starts at the top with coach and vice president Gregg Popovich, who for the last decade has transformed the Spurs from perennial playoff failures into annual title contenders.
Not much attention has been paid to the job Popovich has done over the years, but consider this: Since 1991, only four coaches have won NBA championships: Phil Jackson, Rudy Tomjanovich, Larry Brown and Popovich. While Jackson and Tomjanovich have been, for one reason or another, a constant presence on the newspaper headlines, Popovich has flown under the radar while building the Spurs into a potential dynasty for the next decade.
Popovich didn't have many credentials when he came to San Antonio. His previous head-coaching experience was at Division III Pomona-Pitzer, where he spent eight seasons before accepting a position on Brown's staff at Kansas (the unassuming Popovich even spent one year at Pomona living in the dorm in Pomona, Calif., with his family -- funny, I just can't picture Jackson ordering from his meal card).
After only one season with the Jayhawks, Brown was so impressed with Popovich's intelligence and work ethic that he brought the erstwhile coach with him to San Antonio in 1988. After four years working under Brown, Popovich left for Golden State, where he studied the unconventional ways of Warriors head coach Don Nelson. Only two years later Popovich was named the executive vice president of the Spurs, and in 1996 he added head coach to his list of duties.
Part of what makes Popovich so effective is that his players know that when it comes to the organization, the buck stops with him. Yes, San Antonio has a general manager (R.C. Buford), but all discipline and personnel decisions go through Popovich. If a player has a problem with the coach, he might want to think twice before taking his complaint to the front office.
On the court, two of Popovich's shrewd draft choices are keeping San Antonio within striking distance of conference-leading Phoenix. Tony Parker (chosen 28th in 2001) and Manu Ginobili (57th in 1999) have averaged a combined 30.8 points and 10.4 assists over the past five games, while Brent Barry, an offseason acquisition, has come alive over the same stretch, posting a season-high 11.6 points and 4.4 rebounds.
It's not just the numbers. San Antonio has embraced Popovich's hard-nosed defensive concept. Even without Duncan, the Spurs remain the stingiest team in the league, giving up only 87.1 points per game. Centers Nazr Mohammed and Rasho Nesterovic have manned the middle admirably in Duncan's absence, and Bruce Bowen remains the best on-the-ball defender in the game. Why? Any time you have a quality scorer (such as Ray Allen orĀ Vince Carter) griping about the way you play defense, you know you're doing something right.
Can San Antonio survive a seven-game series without Duncan? That I can't say. As of Thursday the Spurs would be matched up with the streaking Denver Nuggets, who have won five in a row and nine out of their past 10 under the enigmatic George Karl. San Antonio will need Duncan operating out of the low post to keep the run-and-gun Nuggets from controlling the tempo.
Will Duncan be back? Who knows. But until then, count on Popovich and co. to keep the Spurs playing at an elite level. Just don't expect them to draw attention to themselves doing it.
Pop star
Without Duncan, Spurs getting by on Popovich's guile
Link (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2005/writers/chris_mannix/04/07/spurs/index.html)
For most teams, the loss of their star player would spell almost certain doom. The focal point of the offense, the leader of the defense and the heart and soul of the locker room goes down for the rest of the season? How many teams could bounce back from that?
The T'wolves without Kevin Garnett? They're battling the Hawks for the top pick. The Lakers without Kobe Bryant? We've seen how bad they have been with King Kobe; without him they're the equivalent of a top-shelf CBA team.
So how has San Antonio, which lost MVP Tim Duncan for the rest of the regular season, managed to stay afloat? For the Spurs, it starts at the top with coach and vice president Gregg Popovich, who for the last decade has transformed the Spurs from perennial playoff failures into annual title contenders.
Not much attention has been paid to the job Popovich has done over the years, but consider this: Since 1991, only four coaches have won NBA championships: Phil Jackson, Rudy Tomjanovich, Larry Brown and Popovich. While Jackson and Tomjanovich have been, for one reason or another, a constant presence on the newspaper headlines, Popovich has flown under the radar while building the Spurs into a potential dynasty for the next decade.
Popovich didn't have many credentials when he came to San Antonio. His previous head-coaching experience was at Division III Pomona-Pitzer, where he spent eight seasons before accepting a position on Brown's staff at Kansas (the unassuming Popovich even spent one year at Pomona living in the dorm in Pomona, Calif., with his family -- funny, I just can't picture Jackson ordering from his meal card).
After only one season with the Jayhawks, Brown was so impressed with Popovich's intelligence and work ethic that he brought the erstwhile coach with him to San Antonio in 1988. After four years working under Brown, Popovich left for Golden State, where he studied the unconventional ways of Warriors head coach Don Nelson. Only two years later Popovich was named the executive vice president of the Spurs, and in 1996 he added head coach to his list of duties.
Part of what makes Popovich so effective is that his players know that when it comes to the organization, the buck stops with him. Yes, San Antonio has a general manager (R.C. Buford), but all discipline and personnel decisions go through Popovich. If a player has a problem with the coach, he might want to think twice before taking his complaint to the front office.
On the court, two of Popovich's shrewd draft choices are keeping San Antonio within striking distance of conference-leading Phoenix. Tony Parker (chosen 28th in 2001) and Manu Ginobili (57th in 1999) have averaged a combined 30.8 points and 10.4 assists over the past five games, while Brent Barry, an offseason acquisition, has come alive over the same stretch, posting a season-high 11.6 points and 4.4 rebounds.
It's not just the numbers. San Antonio has embraced Popovich's hard-nosed defensive concept. Even without Duncan, the Spurs remain the stingiest team in the league, giving up only 87.1 points per game. Centers Nazr Mohammed and Rasho Nesterovic have manned the middle admirably in Duncan's absence, and Bruce Bowen remains the best on-the-ball defender in the game. Why? Any time you have a quality scorer (such as Ray Allen orĀ Vince Carter) griping about the way you play defense, you know you're doing something right.
Can San Antonio survive a seven-game series without Duncan? That I can't say. As of Thursday the Spurs would be matched up with the streaking Denver Nuggets, who have won five in a row and nine out of their past 10 under the enigmatic George Karl. San Antonio will need Duncan operating out of the low post to keep the run-and-gun Nuggets from controlling the tempo.
Will Duncan be back? Who knows. But until then, count on Popovich and co. to keep the Spurs playing at an elite level. Just don't expect them to draw attention to themselves doing it.