Re: Manus play in Game 6. What % blame , if any, do you Pro Poppers put on Pop?

[Fabbs]

We can all agree Manu sucked beyond sucking last night.

So how about the guy who not only put him in but kept him in?
Also put him back in after he was taken out.

Blame Manu or blame the coach who put and left him in?

Myself? I thought it was obvious to most of us that Manu was off from the get go. Seriously this is not a hindsight thing. I really thought the 1st two or three minutes he played he looked off, wayy off. I watched the game with a friend who is more into baseball but still gets basketball. After Ginobillis 3rd goofy turnover he was like "Get him out of there, he is screwing up the Spurs chances."

Also, if you slow it down or if one of the good techie Spurs posters can come thru again, watch the missed Heat shot where Kawhii looks locked in on the rebound. Almost looks like it's Ginobili who bumps into/knocks Kawhii causing Kawhii to lose the game winning rebound.

I'm not attempting to stir up any ish here. We all know i believe Pop has cost the Spurs championships in other years. Just interested in seeing if any of you Pro Poppers see Game 6 similarly.

[Agloco]

I definitely questioned taking Duncan out of the game for those two possessions at the end. Sticking with that line of thought, you go with the horses that got you here. One made free throw and this conversation isn't happening. Pop doesn't shoot those tbh.

[HI-FI]

never been a Pop ballwasher or even a Manu fanboy (whose fanboys really annoy me at times). if all the good shit starts at the top, then the same could be said about the bad things. I think Pop could feel his butthole tightening, which is normal, but he tried to get too cute and smart with his decisions. I think letting Manu in as long as he did showed that he isn't as progressive as he'd like, because even i could see early on that this was one of those vintage Manu shitstain performances that we'll be talking about for a long time. Pop didn't have the balls to go to a better option, or an option who wouldn't make turnovers that stupid.

sigh....

I just hope the egos of Pop, Manure and Parker with his heroball didn't ruin this for Timmy, who wouldn't be where they are without Timmy. They better look deep and dig deep to send Timmy out the best way possible.

[ElNono]

I've defended Manu many times to what I thought was unfair criticism... but last night he was awful. In hindsight, if we knew he was going to have 8 turnovers, I rather Neal handle the rock and rack those up. At least you know Gary will make a shot here or there... Manu just was that bad.

I understand why Pop stuck with him though. He's one of the few guys that can pull a reversal like G1 against the Warriors. When it doesn't happen though, it looks as ugly as it did last night.

[Fabbs]

I definitely questioned taking Duncan out of the game for those two possessions at the end. Sticking with that line of thought, you go with the horses that got you here. One made free throw and this conversation isn't happening. Pop doesn't shoot those tbh.
two missed fts vs how many goofy assed turnovers by GNob?
Not only turns but on D he was getting worked by whoever he guarded.
Then he elbows James who was asleep until that point. Yeah, i really think it was Ginobilis elbow that sparked LeBron going off.
We win by 15+.

[Fabbs]

never been a Pop ballwasher or even a Manu fanboy (whose fanboys really annoy me at times). if all the good shit starts at the top, then the same could be said about the bad things. I think Pop could feel his butthole tightening, which is normal, but he tried to get too cute and smart with his decisions. I think letting Manu in as long as he did showed that he isn't as progressive as he'd like, because even i could see early on that this was one of those vintage Manu shitstain performances that we'll be talking about for a long time. Pop didn't have the balls to go to a better option, or an option who wouldn't make turnovers that stupid.

sigh....

I just hope the egos of Pop, Manure and Parker with his heroball didn't ruin this for Timmy, who wouldn't be where they are without Timmy. They better look deep and dig deep to send Timmy out the best way possible.
Nicely stated.
What in the hell is Pops offensive strategy in the 4th qtr?!
Have Parker dribble the ball 14 times and chuck up some shit en route to 6-23.
What happened to ball movement team ball?
Unfarking real.

Also, preceding Ray Allens game tying three was a miss by the Heat with 8 seconds to go. Why in the fuck is Parker inside the circle trying to help rebound? (for that matter another Spur) A farcking rebound by the Heat and made two pointer does not hurt us at all! Only a three pointed can screw us. Unbelievably stupid.

[ElNono]

two missed fts vs how many goofy assed turnovers by GNob?
Not only turns but on D he was getting worked by whoever he guarded.
Then he elbows James who was asleep until that point. Yeah, i really think it was Ginobilis elbow that sparked LeBron going off.
We win by 15+.

Hindsight is great, tbh... if Pop knew that's how Manu was going to play, he wouldn't play him. Simple as that.

[Fabbs]

Anyone else wondering why take Splitter out after he had just made two buckets in a row and his confidence zoomed.
2nd basket put us up by 7.
Why not play him and Tim for a minute or two?

[TE]

Pop shat the bed in so many ways tbh

[ElNono]

Anyone else wondering why take Splitter out after he had just made two buckets in a row and his confidence zoomed.
2nd basket put us up by 7.
Why not play him and Tim for a minute or two?

Lebron kept walking into the paint and laying it up on this face.

Tiago was awful last night. Scratch that. He was awful all Finals.

[Fabbs]

Hindsight is great, tbh... if Pop knew that's how Manu was going to play, he wouldn't play him. Simple as that.
Wasn't obvious to you he was off?
How about after the 3rd turnover?
The 4th?
The 5th?

[ElNono]

Wasn't obvious to you he was off?
How about after the 3rd turnover?
The 4th?
The 5th?

I wouldn't have had a problem if Pop had a quick hook with him, especially in the 1st half. But I have no problem with Pop riding him at the end.

And I fully admit he had a horrendous game.

[tlongII]

Popovich was much more to blame for the Spurs loss last night than Manu. If he left Duncan in on either of 2 defensive series you guys would have won.

[024]

When Ginobili had a good game 5, Spurstalk flooded the board with "I told you so" and "SEEE I WAS RIGHT." Pop put him in the game and gave him control of the offense because of game 5. Giving control to Neal would have made no sense, especially after Ginobili's game 5. Nobody could have predicted Ginobili would switch jerseys are start playing for the Heat. Seriously, missing some shots or having a few botched plays would have been okay but to actively disrupt the Spurs offense and literally pass the ball directly to the Heat was something else.

As for Pop's game ending plan, I would have obviously left Duncan in but not because it was the right coaching move but that Duncan deserved to be out on the floor in a potential championship winning game. Was it a bad coaching decision? Maybe, maybe not, the ball just didn't bounce the right way. With Duncan out there, someone else may have taken the shot and the ball could have bounced away from Duncan anyways. Can't blame Pop for going with what he can control, which is his game plan of switching everything. The Spurs were very lucky to be in that position anyways with Parker's fluke 3. Luck just happened to swing the other way to the Heat. Pop can't control that.

[perfectdark]

pop should have taken out parker on that last play and put in someone who can defend
of course timmy should nver been taken out
the way I see it
Miami had the lead deep in the 4th quarter...they were beating us
if it wasnt for TP (fluke) 3 and big 2 pointer he made this game would have been over for us
I hope the players see it that way, we had a weak 4th

[CubanMustGo]

Gotta say that Pop blew it and you would have thought he would have learned his lesson from the beginning of the fourth where Tim was out and the ten point lead virtually vanished in a matter of seconds. Don't know what the hell he was thinking.

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

65/35 blame split for Manu and Pop. Occasionally irrational confidence in Manu has paid off, and I'd rather bet on Manu than Gary Neal in a high pressure road game but by the final two minutes it was obvious that he had nothing going for him in any department.

[UZER]

it not that manu is not giving you anything...its that he literally giving points/runs to the other team. you cant give anything away right now. its hard enough to overcome the heat. its even harder when one of you players is there best player.

[travis2]

70/30 Manu/Pop. Manu was never running on all cylinders. I don't have a problem with subbing Tim out at the end of regulation, but I think he waited too long to get both TP and Tim on the floor in the 4th.

[MannyIsGod]

Anyone else wondering why take Splitter out after he had just made two buckets in a row and his confidence zoomed.
2nd basket put us up by 7.
Why not play him and Tim for a minute or two?

Umn no? SMH Did you not see how he had just given up a soft lay up on the other end too? Did you not see his play in the 1h and 2h outside of those two miracle shots?

Classic case of seeing what you want to see just to take shots at Pop.

[perfectdark]

what I dont understand is why Manu is having such a hard time making free throws??
they used to b automatic now he always misses one
just how mentally frail is he right now

[TheGreatYacht]

When Ginobili had a good game 5, Spurstalk flooded the board with "I told you so" and "SEEE I WAS RIGHT." Pop put him in the game and gave him control of the offense because of game 5. Giving control to Neal would have made no sense, especially after Ginobili's game 5. Nobody could have predicted Ginobili would switch jerseys are start playing for the Heat. Seriously, missing some shots or having a few botched plays would have been okay but to actively disrupt the Spurs offense and literally pass the ball directly to the Heat was something else.

As for Pop's game ending plan, I would have obviously left Duncan in but not because it was the right coaching move but that Duncan deserved to be out on the floor in a potential championship winning game. Was it a bad coaching decision? Maybe, maybe not, the ball just didn't bounce the right way. With Duncan out there, someone else may have taken the shot and the ball could have bounced away from Duncan anyways. Can't blame Pop for going with what he can control, which is his game plan of switching everything. The Spurs were very lucky to be in that position anyways with Parker's fluke 3. Luck just happened to swing the other way to the Heat. Pop can't control that."One lucky shot deserves another"

- Shaq

[Jenks]

99% Pop

Manu shouldn't be in the game to make all the game losing plays in the 4th and OT. The Frank Vogel Maneuver™ was icing on the cake.

[TheGreatYacht]

Countless terrible coaching decisions.Not the least of them is playing Manu way too many fucking minutes. We were up by at least 10 when Manu came in and pissed it away. It was so obvious that Miami was licking their chops when Manu was in and trapping him so that he would make a ridiculous pass that they could pick off. What's that, Pop? Parker was tired? WHO GIVES A FLYING FUCK!!! There is no tomorrow; it's a must win game! YOU HAVE LESS THAN A 1% CHANCE OF WINNING A GAME 7 IN MIAMI, you dumb POS. Don't even get me started on pulling Duncan not once, but twice in critical situations. You know they are going to get one good look at the shot. You know this because, if you are half a coach, you will have told your guys NOT TO FUCKING FOUL. Your best hope is that they brick the shot and you get the rebound. Fuck, if only we had a consensus first fucking ballot Hall of Famer at power forward on our team who's, like, really fucking good at rebounds. Oh, wait! We do, and his fucking name is Tim Duncan. Too bad he's RIDING THE FUCKING PINE with the game on the line. The Spurs were killing it with Parker, Green, Leonard, Diaw, and Duncan, and Pop blows up the lineup down the stretch to put in Turnobili, Tiago "Stone Hand, Pussy Feet" Splitter, and Gary Neal. What the fuck!!! Ride your goddamn ponies into the ground. THERE IS NO FUCKING GAME 7 YOU STUPID PIECE OF SHIT!!! My only solace is that Pop will regret his bullshit coaching for the remainder of his life. And he deserves to.
Is there anyone in here, that DIDN'T know that MANU was going to have a shit game after his first 3 or 4 or 5 turnovers? It's only been his MO all season...1 good game, 2 bad games, etc. Manu had his good game in game 5. He came out like shit in this game, and everyone knew how it would go. Yet POP gave him even MORE minutes this game. IMHO, it's not even that close without Manu's turnovers. And that is totally on POP, for increasing his minutes in perhaps the worst game of MANU's career.
Manu TO's: 8 Rest of Spurs TO's: 5.
I was texting my buddy, Manu would come in and kill the lead. I was yelling at the TV for Timmy to come in and rebound, before Lebron's 3. Pop, you were a fucking moron tonight. And no ,that is not second guessing or any of that shit. Pop fucked up royally tonight. Fuckkkk.
Manu doesn't just play bad. He gives the other teams too many points with his turnovers. Then...after all the turnover shit, he STILL hasn't learned his lesson and gives Bosh and and1.
Look at the lineup that was out there, who was going to score? Certainly not weak ass splitter and certainly not Turnover happy Manu. I don't think Tim went to Pop and said, "Pop it's game 6, the trophy is waiting for us but I need to rest", You're running on adrenaline if not just hyped for the moment. Tony resting even though he didn't carry the load for the first half? That's just shitty coaching.. You have a 10 point lead and you go for the throat you don't ease off and hope to maintain a lead.. Shit, you call a time out as if that was going to help and you keep the same shitty players out there who had no momentum, no play called or anything to get them going.. nothing for Green or Neal? Being 37 has nothing to do with being in the moment, 1 game and up by 10 and the crowd not into it..
Pop is just too damn hardheaded for his own good. AndI'm getting damn tired of his childish, bullshit interviews where he tries to be cute. Get over yourself, Pop. Tonight was his worst coaching game I can remember. Some can say Manu cost us the game tonight but, Pop should have yanked his ass when all of us saw Manu no longer had it. He gave all he had in game 5 and at his age and with all his ailments it didn't take an Einstein to see he just didn't have it tonight. Every NBA player alive wanted us to kick Lebron's ass and instead he kicked Pop in the balls. Maybe Pop got into a bad batch of Jamaican Rum thinking it was wine. He stunk the place up tonight.
Why no TO 20 secs before the end of OT?Amateur coaching by Pop.
8 second chance points for Heat in 44 minutes of Tim on the floor. 6 second chance points in last 30 seconds of regulation with Tim spectating from the bench.
Riding Manu too long and not having Duncan out there to rebound on the Ray Allen 3 were big time fails. Keeping Duncan on the bench was perhaps the biggest fail, as Indiana made the same mistake with Hibbert in the ECF. Teams just keep letting Miami off the hook.Pop is responsible for insisting on playing Manu so many minutes and Manu is responsible for trying to play like Magic Johnson with those terrible bounce passes and trying to play hero ball in the 4th/OT.

[ElNono]

what I dont understand is why Manu is having such a hard time making free throws??
they used to b automatic now he always misses one
just how mentally frail is he right now

He missed them against the Raptors too in meaningless regular season games... you can't focus on that. Dude was 3/4 in the clutch last night. Kawhi missed. Tony missed in OT.

Everything went Miami's way at the end there. It is what it is.

[ChumpDumper]

Plenty of blame to go around.

And Miami was pretty awesome tbh.

[jjktkk]

Pop, Ginobili, about equally. But I look at it as a team loss. Brutal, brutal, loss.

[Agloco]

two missed fts vs how many goofy assed turnovers by GNob?
Not only turns but on D he was getting worked by whoever he guarded.
Then he elbows James who was asleep until that point. Yeah, i really think it was Ginobilis elbow that sparked LeBron going off.
We win by 15+.

Ok. It is what it is though. I question Pop for sitting Duncan especially since Bosh was still out there. Other than that, oh well.

Bottom line is that those two rebounds and two FTs were what ultimately lost us the game. As much as you want to blame Pop for all of it you can't.

[Keepin' it real]

We can all agree Manu sucked beyond sucking last night.

So how about the guy who not only put him in but kept him in?
Also put him back in after he was taken out.

Blame Manu or blame the coach who put and left him in?

Who else does Pop have at his disposal if not Ginobili?
Gary Neal? Please, he's the most hated player on this forum until game 3 of the finals.
Corey Joseph? No.
Nando? No.
Bonner? HELL NO.

It's Ginobili or bust.

[therealtruth]

I definitely questioned taking Duncan out of the game for those two possessions at the end. Sticking with that line of thought, you go with the horses that got you here. One made free throw and this conversation isn't happening. Pop doesn't shoot those tbh.

I'll question him. The rebound was crucial in that situation and who was the guy with the best rebounding ability? TD. It makes no sense. 3's of offensive rebounds are the hardest to defend against because the defense is scrambling. We saw that happen twice. Pop should know that as a coach.

[therealtruth]

Lebron kept walking into the paint and laying it up on this face.

Tiago was awful last night. Scratch that. He was awful all Finals.

He was much better defensively earlier in the series. Spoelstra outcoached Pop by forcing him to not play Splitter.