It is just sad Popovich was nowhere near who he is today during GDP prime

[hitmantb]

I thought he was a great coach during the GDP prime, but when the trio could score 60 points most nights he was not the coach he is today, when he invented the most unique team ball system.

Never in the history of the league a team had no one averaging more than 30 minutes a game, no top-10 MVP candidate, and still grabbed #1 seed and made it into the finals. And the Spurs passing game in my opinion exceeded Kings and Jazz of the past.

Can you imagine prime GDP running the current system? We would have three-peated for sure. Pop today is without any question the greatest coach ever at player development and getting the most out of his players. Phil is still better at ego management however. I don't think Pop style would have worked with Jordan/Pippen, OK Lakers or Rodman/Artest's of the world.

[DMC]

He didn't need to be. He still won 3 rings.

Pop gets his kudos today because he makes it happen with mid level guys. If he had big talent, he'd not be playing CoJo in game 6 of the WCF.

[DarrinS]

Pop adapted his style to the aging big 3 and revolving door of role players. Pretty remarkable actually.

[FromWayDowntown]

Perhaps the most remarkable thing about Pop's evolution as a coach is the fact that those who followed him most closely -- Spurs fans -- generally didn't think that Pop would ever adapt and change his stripes. Unremarkably, as that adaptation has gone on, many Spurs fans have bitched about the drift away from the old days of suffocating defense (something that is basically no longer possible in today's NBA) and stagnant offense. Two more Finals trips later, Pop's understanding of the need to change (and his ability to make that change happen) is completely vindicated -- and, oh by the way, his team just ran through a Western Conference playoffs against 3 of the top 7 regular season offenses (in terms of Offensive Rating -- Portland was #2; Dallas was #3; and OKC was #7) as the best defensive team in the West playoffs by a substantial margin. He built a prolific and dynamic offense after 2009, then rebuilt the defense after 2011 and ended up with a truly elite team once more.

[FromWayDowntown]

By the way, while Pop is a very different (and better) coach today than he was from 2003-2008, he did win 3 titles during that span, made another West Finals (2008), and but for Fisher's absurd shot and Manu's foul, might well have won 5 titles (though I think that it's more likely that if the Spurs had won in 2004 or 2006, they wouldn't have won in 2005 or 2007). They were probably 2 plays away from being in the NBA's Final Four in every season from 2003-2008, despite playing in the murderous Western Conference. It's not like Pop was some hinderance to the successes of his teams in that era.

[phxspurfan]

If he had big talent, he'd not be playing CoJo in game 6 of the WCF.

I lol'd. It's true

[Seventyniner]

By the way, while Pop is a very different (and better) coach today than he was from 2003-2008, he did win 3 titles during that span, made another West Finals (2008), and but for Fisher's absurd shot and Manu's foul, might well have won 5 titles (though I think that it's more likely that if the Spurs had won in 2004 or 2006, they wouldn't have won in 2005 or 2007). They were probably 2 plays away from being in the NBA's Final Four in every season from 2003-2008, despite playing in the murderous Western Conference. It's not like Pop was some hinderance to the successes of his teams in that era.

Just about the only thing that kept the Spurs out of the WCF in 2006 was the screwed-up seeding system that forced the Spurs (the 4 seed but would have been the 2 seed in today's system) to play the Mavs in round 2. Unless you think the Suns would have beaten the Spurs, but I can't buy that given that neither the 2005 nor 2007 Suns could even force a game 7 with the Spurs.

[Malik Hairston]

Two reasons:

1. He didn't really need to, tbh..prime Duncan + supporting cast was enough to win..Pop was still a great coach, but it was mostly centered around his defensive scheme and his understanding of relating to his players/team..

2. Historically, the NBA has been really vanilla, especially in the 90s and most of the 2000s, where ISO-ball and ISO-post play was the base of every offense..most NBA coaches have been terrible, throughout the years, tbh..

The reason coaches like Don Nelson, Jerry Sloan and Mike D'Antoni stood out was because they ran different systems than the norm..

Pop did his research and adjusted towards the new trend of the league, along with being innovative..he has always been intelligent, obviously, and he conveyed his intelligence to the new brand of NBA basketball, which features more spacing, pace and ball movement..

There was less ISO-based offense in this year's NBA than there has been since the 80s..only 6 teams ran more than 10% of their offense through ISO, and of those 6 teams, 2 of them have already fired their coaches(Warriors, Knicks) and there's a decent chance that OKC does, too..

NBA teams are finally diverting from iso basketball that ruined the 90s and 2000s..everybody remembers the 90s with nostalgia for their "hard fouls" and "physicality", but along with most of the 2000s, it was some of the ugliest basketball I have ever watched:lol..

[FromWayDowntown]

Just about the only thing that kept the Spurs out of the WCF in 2006 was the screwed-up seeding system that forced the Spurs (the 4 seed but would have been the 2 seed in today's system) to play the Mavs in round 2. Unless you think the Suns would have beaten the Spurs, but I can't buy that given that neither the 2005 nor 2007 Suns could even force a game 7 with the Spurs.

The Spurs were actually #1 in 2006; it was the Mavericks who were underseeded as the #4 when they had the second best record in the West.

That series (and the disappointment that their classic series was just a second round series rather than the West Finals) basically caused the NBA to change the rule that made the division winners the top 3 seeds in each conference and allowed the non-division winner with the best record to claim whichever of the top 4 spots was rightfully its position.

[Malik Hairston]

Part of the reason I loved watching the Spurs-Suns rivalry, other than the Spurs owning them, was that D'Antoni's brand of basketball showed us a different side of the Spurs, where they played more up-tempo basketball and managed to beat the Suns at their own game in some of those games..

I loved the '99 and 2003 Spurs, but when you look back at those games, some of them are so awful to watch:lol..

[Seventyniner]

The Spurs were actually #1 in 2006; it was the Mavericks who were underseeded as the #4 when they had the second best record in the West.

That series (and the disappointment that their classic series was just a second round series rather than the West Finals) basically caused the NBA to change the rule that made the division winners the top 3 seeds in each conference and allowed the non-division winner with the best record to claim whichever of the top 4 spots was rightfully its position.

Oops, how could I forget the Spurs had HCA?

But yeah, the division winner thing was even more stupid then than it is now.

[DMC]

I mean but really, how the fuck do you lose to Corey Joseph and Matt Bonner?

[jjktkk]

I mean but really, how the fuck do you lose to Corey Joseph and Matt Bonner?

Only logical answer is Pop.

[DMC]

Only logical answer is Pop.

Or Scott Brooks.

[100%duncan]

Or Scott Brooks.

:lmao

[313]

I mean but really, how the fuck do you lose to Corey Joseph and Matt Bonner?http://www.sportsoutwest.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Brooks-2.jpg

[EVAY]

Well, I'm one of those folks who actually enjoyed watching the nba before all the defensive stops were outlawed. I like it better now, but I liked it then too.

But I truly did get tired of watching the days of 'geev thee boll to Teemy' and everybody else run to the other side of the court so he could iso whoever was trying to guard him in the post. It worked, but people were right about it being boring to watch.

As others have pointed out, Pop changed with the rule changes in the NBA, and with Tim's aging body and aching knee, and with the addition of a speedy point guard and a phenomenal playmaker like Ginobili.

Right now Pop's brand of basketball is the most fun to watch in the league, at least to those of us who enjoy watching good basketball. I don't actually watch most other teams because I have grown tired of iso basketball.

[Arcadian]

Why GDP? I would think the order should be DPG.