Article: Gregg Popovich Has Made The Spurs Worse

[cd021]

https://www.spurstalk.com/gregg-popovich-blame-game-san-antonio-spurs-worse/

The Gist: :depressed

[MultiTroll]

I hope you don't get pinked.

[Arcadian]

Yeah. This team should at least be as good as last season, but should really be better given the return of Murray. And they've been mostly healthy all season. Yet they've somehow managed to get worse. :lol

[UZER]

https://www.spurstalk.com/gregg-popovich-blame-game-san-antonio-spurs-worse/

The Gist: :depressed

Ballsy. :tu

[FkLA]

Solid article, cd021. :tu

The evidence doesn't lie. Pop has been awful.

[spurspl]

if spurs did not tank and did not draft robinson and duncan, gregg would be just an average coach. Nowadays he sucks and only what he cares about is another PO, not focused on long term plan

[GAustex]

In some ways it seems there may be a mental disorder being displayed by poop. A dissonance.

[Spurtacular]

if spurs did not tank and did not draft robinson and duncan, gregg would be just an average coach. Nowadays he sucks and only what he cares about is another PO, not focused on long term plan

He would've been out of the league within seven years and living on his air force pension.

[acoelho1]

Pop is no dummy and I’m sure he sees those deficiencies in playing Brin & Marco. I can only assume this is the Spurs version of tanking without being obvious about it. It’s the only thing that makes sense of Pop’s decision making & rotations.

[RC_Drunkford]

thank you for this article. Definitely some of your best work. Sniffers will say it's not true, others will come up with some stupid conspiracy theories like this one:


Pop is no dummy and I’m sure he sees those deficiencies in playing Brin & Marco. I can only assume this is the Spurs version of tanking without being obvious about it. It’s the only thing that makes sense of Pop’s decision making & rotations.

Spurs would be 5th in the west if their coach wasn't Senilovich

[Mugen]

Damn bruh, surprised SniffMVP gave the go-ahead for a negative Pop article :lol

The spurs would be easily, EASILY in the playoffs this season with a chance at a Top 4 seed if you replaced Pop with literally any other coach in the league. He's been that bad unfortunately.

Worst yet, the handling of Lonnie, the failure to play DJ + White together, and of course the inevitable Forbes extension will have ramifications long after this year.....

It's going to be a great, great day when Pop finally retires, hopefully it's this summer tbh.

[Mugen]

Lot of rumblings from sources within the organization that Pop is expecting to hand the keys of the franchise over to Bryn starting this summer.....(he's already said that Forbes is one of the most important players on the team and puts him up there with the likes of Manu/TP as all time Spurs greats).......

Somebody obviously needs to step in and take the keys away before his mental condition deteriorates any further.......

[spurspl]

Damn bruh, surprised SniffMVP gave the go-ahead for a negative Pop article :lol

The spurs would be easily, EASILY in the playoffs this season with a chance at a Top 4 seed if you replaced Pop with literally any other coach in the league. He's been that bad unfortunately.

Worst yet, the handling of Lonnie, the failure to play DJ + White together, and of course the inevitable Forbes extension will have ramifications long after this year.....

It's going to be a great, great day when Pop finally retires, hopefully it's this summer tbh.

no way that spurs would be a top4 with this roster. But would be better without pop thats truuuu.

[Russ]

The title of the article is eye-catching (but a bit idiotic).

[slick'81]

You tell'em cal! Great article!

[DMC]

Needs to be cleaned up grammatically and some structural issues. Reads like plebe work. Would not recommend for even a free download tbh

[Spurtacular]

There was hope that this team would be significantly better defensively than last season’s 19th ranked team. Instead, the Spurs rank 23rd this season, in large part thanks to an overreliance on defensive turnstiles (https://i.redd.it/zpt6vr454lc41.jpg) like Bryn Forbes and Marco Belinelli.

:bang

[Floyd Pacquiao]

Excellent article, it's something us objective spurs fans have been saying all season. The only defense for pop's coaching this season is a conspiracy theory that he's tanking :lol

[Chillen]

Excellent article, it's something us objective spurs fans have been saying all season. The only defense for pop's coaching this season is a conspiracy theory that he's tanking :lol

The time to tank was last season, that Zion guy, cough.

[JPB]

The Republicans thread :lol

[ducks]

I hope you don't get pinked.

Why would he
Anything he was to easy on pop

[KobesAchilles]

Just enjoy the ride guys. It’s his last year here. Raise a toast to one of the greatest coaches to ever do it

[MultiTroll]

Just enjoy the ride guys. It’s his last year here. Raise a toast to one of the greatest coaches to ever do it
And if it's not?

[313]

This is the same Pop who gave significant minutes to scrubs his whole career. The only difference now is that his roster's raw talent doesn't outweigh that flaw.

Pop's strengths, at least earlier in his career, are in extending the lifeline of great teams by drafting (Tony, Manu), and load management. Those skills are less valuable when your best player is a net neutral impact wise(demar). To compound it, his flaws are blindingly clear without a superstar to lean on.

Sure, other coaches could handle this team better, but it's not like this roster would be anywhere near contending regardless. Pop's strengths maximized the Spurs championships windows and sans Kawhi wanting to go home, we would likely still be contending now. It's unfortunate that it's ending on a bitter note, but you take the good with the bad.

Hopefully Brent gets waived/traded, though.

[tbdog]

2014 forgives him for this season. 2014 the greatest coaching season ever.

[Mugen]

:lol Yup, Pop has been garbage for the last 10 years....the only reason he was relevant post 2010 is that RC bailed his old ass out by drafting Kawhi.

[Mugen]

2014 was Duncan, Manu, and Kawhi willing the team to a championship.

The old man was probably the 9th most important guy on the team that year :lol

[dbestpro]

If Pop has not figured out what to do with Forbes after the 2nd half with Charlotte then indeed his ability to coach has ended.

[Mugen]

If Pop has not figured out what to do with Forbes after the 2nd half with Charlotte then indeed his ability to coach has ended.

Bryn will still be in the SL come next game and he'll get his 25+ minutes for the rest of the season, more than Murray, Lonnie, White, Poetl...and anybody else worth a damn not named Demar or Lamarcus.

Then he'll get a nice, big fat extension come summer time as one last fuck you from the old man to the team.

[Thomas82]

I heard that Pop was ready to quit after last season before the Holt kids begged him to stay. Is that true?

[sasaint]

If Pop has not figured out what to do with Forbes after the 2nd half with Charlotte then indeed his ability to coach has ended.

Nope. He will start next game.

[sasaint]

Bryn will still be in the SL come next game and he'll get his 25+ minutes for the rest of the season, more than Murray, Lonnie, White, Poetl...and anybody else worth a damn not named Demar or Lamarcus.

Then he'll get a nice, big fat extension come summer time as one last fuck you from the old man to the team.

Bryn has clearly slipped in Pop's esteem. I think Becky is finally forcing him to acknowledge the empirical reality. It may take awhile to accomplish a total breakthrough, but it is undeniable that he has benched Bryn in the last couple of games and equally undeniable that the results were very good. Could it be that the Old Asshole does some experimenting during the RRT that will surprise us - like starting somebody in Bryn's place...?

[Mugen]

Bryn has clearly slipped in Pop's esteem. I think Becky is finally forcing him to acknowledge the empirical reality. It may take awhile to accomplish a total breakthrough, but it is undeniable that he has benched Bryn in the last couple of games and equally undeniable that the results were very good. Could it be that the Old Asshole does some experimenting during the RRT that will surprise us - like starting somebody in Bryn's place...?

There's only so much one woman can do before the tyrant just does what he wants unfortunately.

[sasaint]

but I have to admit Mugen is correct, it was like he had passed a death sentence oh his child.

Like he is Facing the Judgment of Solomon

I missed Mugen's comment. Nor did I see any sideline shots at the moment of Bryn's benching.

I don't doubt it, though. But it does seem like he is beginning to see the light... however slowly.

[cd021]

Bryn has clearly slipped in Pop's esteem. I think Becky is finally forcing him to acknowledge the empirical reality. It may take awhile to accomplish a total breakthrough, but it is undeniable that he has benched Bryn in the last couple of games and equally undeniable that the results were very good. Could it be that the Old Asshole does some experimenting during the RRT that will surprise us - like starting somebody in Bryn's place...?

Its hard to say; he's played 26 or fewer minutes in 9 of the past 11 games and more than 25 minutes in only one of the past 7 games.

He is playing fewer minutes but he's still starting...

[sasaint]

There's only so much one woman can do before the tyrant just does what he wants unfortunately.

Yeah, I am not really expecting much more, but a fellow can hope - although I am not usually very hopeful when it comes to the Old Asshole.

[Mugen]

I missed Mugen (https://www.spurstalk.com/forums/member.php?u=15519)'s comment. Nor did I see any sideline shots at the moment of Bryn's benching.

I don't doubt it, though. But it does seem like he is beginning to see the light... however slowly.

Everybody on the squad was looking the happiest I've seen them all season when the run started...everybody except Bryn and Pop tbh......

You can just tell how frustrated the majority of the team is with Bryn getting all those minutes regardless of his performance...

He's legit the worst player on the roster and gets 3rd most minutes. I'd be livid at Pop.

[cd021]

Decent coaching tonight; going with Poeltl more, playing White and Murray together, barely any Forbes.

Still went down from 19 to the Hornets though...

[sasaint]

Its hard to say; he's played 26 or fewer minutes in 9 of the past 11 games and more than 25 minutes in only one of the past 7 games.

He is playing fewer minutes but he's still starting...


That's what I meant by taking awhile to accomplish a total breakthrough. But 2 factors give me a tiny bit of hope. Pop is playing Derrick and Dijon together (with excellent results), and he is also giving much more time to Lonnie. Maybe 3 factors: he has kind of dusted off Marco after a bit of a roller-coaster ride earlier in the season. So, he might... I say might be moving toward a guard rotation of Derrick, Dijon, Lonnie, Patty and Marco - relegating Bryn to 6th spot (or even trading him, hopefully.) By "moving" I mean in the glacial sense. You should bear in mind that glaciers also "move."

[sasaint]

Everybody on the squad was looking the happiest I've seen them all season when the run started...everybody except Bryn and Pop tbh......

You can just tell how frustrated the majority of the team is with Bryn getting all those minutes regardless of his performance...

He's legit the worst player on the roster and gets 3rd most minutes. I'd be livid at Pop.


Yeah, they looked even happier than the coach-by-committee game. When you con devote 100% of your energy and attention to your own assignment and not have to be concerned about what the Traffic Cone is failing to do, everybody' effectiveness is multiplied - probably even Dumbmar's.

[sasaint]

Decent coaching tonight; going with Poeltl more, playing White and Murray together, barely any Forbes.

Still went down from 19 to the Hornets though...


I would give the Old Asshole a B - best grade of the season. (But I bet it was because Becky got in his ear.)

[lefty]

Shit article

Not defending Pop but that roster is shit

[Prime BEEF]

Just enjoy the ride guys. It’s his last year here. Raise a toast to one of the greatest coaches to ever do it
Everyone should rejoice if true. But sadly I don’t think you’re right

[Prime BEEF]

Shit article

Not defending Pop but that roster is shit
Pop created and built that roster sooo...

[ducks]

Joey Wilkinson �� AssassinateHate
·
8m
The sample size is now 1,218mins on court and 1,116mins off court for Bryn Forbes. That is sizable. The Spurs have had the equivalent of the 28th ranked defense when he’s been on the floor, and the equivalent of the 6th ranked defense when he’s been benched.



3
3
17

Joey Wilkinson �� AssassinateHate
·
13m
Spurs had a +47 net rating when Lonnie and Jakob were on the court tonight. That seems good.

ace with the goods

[weeks]

Bryn has clearly slipped in Pop's esteem. I think Becky is finally forcing him to acknowledge the empirical reality. It may take awhile to accomplish a total breakthrough, but it is undeniable that he has benched Bryn in the last couple of games and equally undeniable that the results were very good. Could it be that the Old Asshole does some experimenting during the RRT that will surprise us - like starting somebody in Bryn's place...?

you know it makes me wonder if Pop really did think he could turn Forbes into another Steph Curry

[Slippy]

Decent coaching tonight; going with Poeltl more, playing White and Murray together, barely any Forbes.

Still went down from 19 to the Hornets though...

Cant be said enough though. the Spurs went from being down 17 to up 21 with 2mins left in game when Pop prioritized defense first by subbing in Dwhite and Jacob in the 3rd. Benching Bryn for that period was the biggest factor.

Will pop go with this change for the rest of the season as in Bryn off the bench? Doubt it, all you can hope for is Bryn getting iced in the 2nd halves of games like this one.

[UZER]

you know it makes me wonder if Pop really did think he could turn Forbes into another Steph Curry

He thought it was smart to sub out Duncan, a top 10 player of all time, on the most important play of the ‘13 finals. So yes.

[RC_Drunkford]

let's hope the old man has finally had enough of Bryn Forbes. Forbes has been bricking shots every game. He's shooting the 3 worse than White, Walker and only 1% better than Murray. There's no reason to play him at all. It says a lot when you see Marco Belinelli out there and realize he's way better than Forbes in every facet of the game while being almost out of the league himself. I don't expect things to change but one can hope. That's all we got left

[RC_Drunkford]

One thing that can give us hope is that Pop loves defense and a half of giving up 27 points might make him realize who his best defenders are. I mean it was clear before the season started, just not to him. Pop is slow

[SayTown]

Pop is not going anywhere because he knows if he retires then Bryn is out of a job. Pop is going to coach for 10 more years and use Bryn like a bar of soap. Also I'm sure DeMar probably blames Pop and Bryn for him not making the All Star team because if Spurs were .500 or better than he is most likely in.

[sasaint]

Cant be said enough though. the Spurs went from being down 17 to up 21 with 2mins left in game when Pop prioritized defense first by subbing in Dwhite and Jacob in the 3rd. Benching Bryn for that period was the biggest factor.

Will pop go with this change for the rest of the season as in Bryn off the bench? Doubt it, all you can hope for is Bryn getting iced in the 2nd halves of games like this one.

Bryn's role going forward will be the absolute litmus test of Pop's intentions for the season. Is he tanking or is he seriously trying to win? Just follow the bouncing Bryn and you shall see.

[GAustex]

Bryn's role going forward will be the absolute litmus test of Pop's intentions for the season. Is he tanking or is he seriously trying to win? Just follow the bouncing Bryn and you shall see.
:lmao

[Spursfanfromafar]

Bold, sharp, logically argued article! Kudos!

[lefty]

Pop created and built that roster sooo...

Eeeh lets not exaggerate this

[MultiTroll]

https://youtu.be/c_H7qsslW5s
No further evidence needed.

2008 best, certainly after 2013 he should have been gone.
2014 was an absolute gift by Duncan etc so that would have been a great feel-good send off.

[Uriel]

An underrated reason for Popovich’s decline this year has been the departure of key assistants in Messina and Udoka. With no veteran assistant coaches left on the bench to challenge his instincts (except perhaps Becky), Pop has free reign to play the rotations he prefers—which are worse for the team.

[Dex]

An underrated reason for Popovich’s decline this year has been the departure of key assistants in Messina and Udoka. With no veteran assistant coaches left on the bench to challenge his instincts (except perhaps Becky), Pop has free reign to play the rotations he prefers—which are worse for the team.

Underrated point. Watching Timmy on the bench, I don’t see him often being actively involved in discussions regarding game plan or strategy...he seems pretty reserved and works more closely with the players..which is understandable considering he is a rookie coach. He’s not going to come in and start trying to call the shots.

I still have high hopes for Becky, but she is still in her first year as a lead assistant.

[UZER]

Everybody on the squad was looking the happiest I've seen them all season when the run started...everybody except Bryn and Pop tbh......

You can just tell how frustrated the majority of the team is with Bryn getting all those minutes regardless of his performance...

He's legit the worst player on the roster and gets 3rd most minutes. I'd be livid at Pop.

“more important things” Pop not only wont retire from the thing that is so unimportant in life at 70 years old, he also dragged Timmy back to the bench and on the road away from his family and two year old daughter. :lol

[sasaint]

So glum after a big second half comeback. Pop just got his nose undeniably rubbed in Bryn’s poop, and he didn’t like the incontrovertible evidence that he has been horribly wrong about Bryn. Pop would have looked more cheerful at an actual wake.

[dbestpro]

I wish Manu was head coach. He sees everything.

[SpursDynasty85]

I think there are positives and negatives to Pop this season. In the short term, YES, this team is worse because of the way Pop is coaching but in the longterm I don't think so. The younger players are being immersed in a culture and I'm sure Forbes just outworks and is out studying a lot of the younger guards outside of the game. Plus I think Spurs want to move Demar Derozan the most and Demar's stats are going to look better with more more space for him to operate (Forbes allows more spacing but negative anywhere else really).

[cd021]

I think there are positives and negatives to Pop this season. In the short term, YES, this team is worse because of the way Pop is coaching but in the longterm I don't think so. The younger players are being immersed in a culture and I'm sure Forbes just outworks and is out studying a lot of the younger guards outside of the game. Plus I think Spurs want to move Demar Derozan the most and Demar's stats are going to look better with more more space for him to operate (Forbes allows more spacing but negative anywhere else really).

-I think he's helped Walker, by holding him to a higher standard. He's also limited that development by not fully unleashing him. Walker looks significantly better defensively than he did before.

-The problem is that Forbes biggest strength hasn't been that strong this season. He shooting a full 6% worse than last season from 3. Teams actually don't always treat him like a sharp shooter either, he doesn't necessarily create as much space as one might think.

[cjw]

It says a lot when you see Marco Belinelli out there and realize he's way better than Forbes in every facet of the game while being almost out of the league himself.

Watching the fourth quarter yesterday, it was clear that there are lineups that work with Beli (can’t have other zero’s on D) as he at least gives some size. Never thought I’d say it either, but if we only get to send to the bench, much prefer Beli to be playing over Forbes.

With Walker’s ascent, Forbes should be out of the rotation if not moved.

[cd021]

Shit article

Not defending Pop but that roster is shit

He does have a big say in the roster as the president of basketball operations...

[MultiTroll]

So glum after a big second half comeback. Pop just got his nose undeniably rubbed in Bryn’s poop, and he didn’t like the incontrovertible evidence that he has been horribly wrong about Bryn. Pop would have looked more cheerful at an actual wake.
This.

He's such a poser with his tired old glum schtik.

[UZER]

https://youtu.be/c_H7qsslW5s

So Pop adores and plays Bryn so many minutes for his effort, but then says the second half surge was strictly dude to better effort, but Forbes was on the bench the entire second half.

Maybe the team would consistently give more effort is Bryn was buried on the bench where he belongs.

What an ass Pop has become.

[dbreiden83080]

What's our record with Becky Hammon or Tim Duncan as HC? We lack talent.

[MultiTroll]

What's our record with Becky Hammon or Tim Duncan as HC? We lack talent.
Sample size?
Don't think Crater has missed all year.

[John B]

I know Pop’s teaching for players like Lonnie/Murray/White to earn their minutes, and not just given to them. It’s been frustrating because of the record, and I’m for one hates Pop about it. In retrospect, White/Murray/Lonnie has been playing better. I think he’s tougher to those who he sees has more to give. I think in the long run, Spurs will be better because if what fans see as stubbornness.

[FkLA]

Remember when someone asked him about the White-Murray tandem earlier in the year and this asshole's response was "it just hasn't worked out" after like a 5 minute sample size?

When is he going to look at the 1200 minute sample size and realize Brent belongs in the Filipino league?

[Floyd Pacquiao]

What's our record with Becky Hammon or Tim Duncan as HC? We lack talent.
https://twitter.com/AssassinateHate/status/1223831362093842433?s=19

[dbestpro]

Pop should go do a Jackson and go coach the Knicks into another 5 years of losing.

[lefty]

He does have a big say in the roster as the president of basketball operations...
Still he’s bot on the court

[cd021]

Still he’s bot on the court

Put he decides who is...

[Chillen]

Well if the Spurs playoff streak ends this season and they don't get the record, Pop will be the fall guy regardless and he deserves it with some of his lineup choices this season.

He should have signed Melo, lol.

[JADG79]

Pop is clearing the path to Becky, he is lowering the standard. Impossible to be so low with a healthy team.
Any coach will be an improvement even a woman.

[TDMVPDPOY]

Well if the Spurs playoff streak ends this season and they don't get the record, Pop will be the fall guy regardless and he deserves it with some of his lineup choices this season.

He should have signed Melo, lol.

or rose

[Fireball]

2014 was Duncan, Manu, and Kawhi willing the team to a championship.

The old man was probably the 9th most important guy on the team that year :lol

that is a dumb take ...

[Dancelot]

You know what actually pissed me off the most this season was when pop finally inserted Lonnie into the SL in place of Forbes for ONE FUCKING GAME only to go right back to Brent. I mean why the fuck even do it in the first place? I think there was an injury that night but it was at a completely different position.

[Shakril]

Pop is clearing the path to Becky, he is lowering the standard. Impossible to be so low with a healthy team.
Any coach will be an improvement even a woman.

Put a little bit respect behind Coach Becky, she worked hard to get were she is. Her Gender is neither a positive nor a negative factor here only her Talents and Merits should count.

[JADG79]

Put a little bit respect behind Coach Becky, she worked hard to get were she is. Her Gender is neither a positive nor a negative factor here only her Talents and Merits should count.
Is not disrespect is common sense of roles.
Is your woman the head of the household? An NBA coach is the head of a Men Team.
We have less men with balls, for that reason women are step up.

[RC_Drunkford]

You know what actually pissed me off the most this season was when pop finally inserted Lonnie into the SL in place of Forbes for ONE FUCKING GAME only to go right back to Brent. I mean why the fuck even do it in the first place? I think there was an injury that night but it was at a completely different position.

the reason for that was that Pop had to play Forbes off the bench then and playing Forbes with Mills and Belinelli just doesn't work. Starting Walker would mean that Pop couldn't play Bryn at all and that's just not going to happen with one of his pets