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still soft, IMO. Orlando was awful after their b2b2b.
Bonner and Blair are 2 ply soft.
still soft, IMO. Orlando was awful after their b2b2b.
their d tonight was good
duncan was to tired to push dwight off the block
With Pop's Bonner > Splitter decisions this season, I don't think Pop has the credibility to call his team soft.
Message to Pop: Put your best team on the floor at the right times during the game, and then you can play the "soft" card if they don't produce.
I agree that they were demoralized, but I think it came from the horrid calls/lack of calls in the first half. Tbh, the Spurs haven't had that mental toughness (outside of Manu) since Horry and Bowen left the team, and ironically, while Manu is the most mentally tough, he has been the most pysically injured...and that is really crummy for Manu, as hard as he works.
The smartest thing Pop has ever done is shun accolades from himself by saying it is the players that make coaches look good. With an aging TD and questionable lineups, it is clear that Pop was correct in diverting attention away from himself. At some point, the public is going to grow tired of Pop's same old tune. The dog and pony show is beginning to wear itself thin.
Don't get me wrong, I think Pop is a darn good coach, but be honest, would Sloan be getting more out of this team right now?
I think any resonable fan would recognize that Sloan did more with less compared to any other coach in the league during his tenure, all the while, people like Phil Jackson became renowned as a "Zen Master". It is really funny how the "Zen Master" always relied on perfect timing for his success. It was perfect timing when he got in on the action in Chicago right as they were in the process of turning the corner ( in part due to an aging Pistons team), then he got out while the getting was good, then arrived in LA yet again under perfect conditions.
Later, an aging Shaq came along and presto, he was out again while Kobe was flying solo w/o a big to help him. The prodigals son then returned once again, and got Gasol along with another ring, then knew when to get out of LA yet again.
When did Phil ever have any success building a team in a small market?
Phil doesn't even deserve to be mentioned in the same sentence as Sloan...yes, even considering the championships. Funny thing is, as a Spurs fan, I always hated the Jazz and Sloan, but after Malone and Stockton retired, I realized that Sloan was simply a top notch coach. I was dissapointed to see that primadonna Deron Williams run him out of the business of coaching.
So what will Pop's legacy be?
I hope Pop pulls his head out of the sand and realizes that Tiago>Bonner, he can't rely on that tired old dog and pony show that he has been playing with the last few years, and puts his best foot forward when making decisions to insure success... wherever success may be for this team.
I give Pop much credit, he knows players>coach is good for job security.
re: Pop calling the team soft . . .
I was very disappointed that after Lebron was re-inserted in the game to disrespect and clown on the Spurs so he could pad his stats that nobody did anything. They laid down like cowardly dogs. They didn't have to be goons, but at least stand up for themselves.
As a comparison (jan. 18th article):
David Locke, Jazz radio pbp-man, has such a situation with the Spurs as one of his "5 Moments that changed and defined the Utah Jazz" and led to their turnaround.
The Spurs don't have that kind of pride. They aren't a junkyard dog team, they aren't a proud team, they're a Jefferson-Bonner team.Today I talked to some of the Jazz players about moments that changed and defined this team. The consensus was the following 5.
1) Josh Howard’s flagrant foul in San Antonio
With 3.3 seconds left in the third quarter the Utah Jazz were well on their way to a third blowout loss in 4 games. The Jazz were trailing 82-60 the rout was on. On the final possession of the 3rd quarter the Spurs had moved into highlight mode and James Anderson drove the lane for a dunk. Josh Howard blasted Anderson and sent the message that the Jazz would not allow a team to run rough shot over them for the entire night. The Jazz won the 4th quarter that night 29-21 and while they were still on the wrong side of a blowout, but they held onto their pride.
I agree with your sentiments about Pop. But no need to bash on PJ. It takes a different type of skill to take a talented team over the top than to make a small market team successful. They're different. PJ's the best at what he does and other coaches like Sloan are good at what they do.
fify
Come one man, it only takes a pretty good-great coach to win with prime Jordan, and prime Kobe+prime Shaq/close to prime Gasol. Idk if I'd say Pop is better than PJ though... PJ might, and I stress, MIGHT have gotten the Spurs a repeat or 3-peat somewhere between 1999-2007. Maybe Phil would have kept Nazr/Rasho/Bowen/Ian for longer, signed Scola, and never signed RJ/Bonner, who's to say? And let's not even get into if Splitter/Hill/Blair/Hairston/Dragic/Leanord/Green would have made it here under him. Too many variables, but I still think Timmy might have 5 rings with Phil. It might also be possible that Phil can't do more with less like Pop can, that he needs to be on the cusp of greatness, with the greatest player of all time on his team, or 2 franchise-level players at once.
Bump.
So after the loss to the Kings, Pop basically said the Kings hit some jumpers down the stretch to win the game. Personally, I thought the Spurs were a lot softer tonight (mentally and physically) than they were against the Heat. The Kings basically just hustled and ran their way to a victory while the Spurs never really woke up.
In other words, I thought tonight was more Soft Card worthy. But maybe I'm the only one . . .
RJ skipping the 3 and passing it proves your point
Whose gonna pull the Soft Card on Pop?
Frankly, some of our players own the entire Soft deck.
Our dudes were so in soft.....
Matt Bonner and Richard Jefferson, upon hearing the news that spurs' training facilities would be switching to the Charmin 2-ply ultra soft rolls.
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