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And that whole article especially the ending is why I want this team to win one more. For those two to walk out on top for everything they have given us and the city of San Antonio. Pop and Duncan will never see this but thank you....
I don't give a , I'll never like Michael Finley, tbh, even with his clutch shooting..
And that whole article especially the ending is why I want this team to win one more. For those two to walk out on top for everything they have given us and the city of San Antonio. Pop and Duncan will never see this but thank you....
A ring isn't something that can just be given, it has to be taken. And in case you haven't noticed, it's not an easy thing to take.
heh, heh, heh.
Yup...Miami took it away from the Spurs last year, and the Spurs are going to take it back this year, book it!
Amazing how close Pop came to being fired before that Houston game, after they had just been humiliated by Utah on national TV. Not only that, but the Spurs were also seemingly close to trading David Robinson to Portland for Rasheed Wallace. Avery Johnson basically saved Pop's job by coaching that team to the le.
Of course Tony cares for the limelight a lot more than Manu and Tim do but he still isn't nearly as obsessed with fame compared to the other stars of the NBA. He's still pretty mild when it comes to it IMO
the nellie prank on pop was classic, "pop wants it, put it on my tab!"
That Utah game seemed likely to be Pop's last. They just got humiliated at home on NBC that afternoon and all of the preseason talk of the Spurs being contenders seemed likely to be supportable only if Pop left. I can remember fans shouting at Doc that he needed to take over (he had "coached" the guys during the lockout, if I remember correctly). Stein's right -- at the time, Pop certainly wasn't yet "Pop." I still recall thinking, during the 1999 Finals, that Pop must have seemed like some sort of interloper on that stage; I half thought the game officials had no idea who he was and wouldn't give him much credibility. How things have changed.
I laugh now at talking heads who question the idea of a team wanting to hire a lower profile coach when higher profile names are available; in 1996 or 1997, almost nobody would have hired Gregg Popovich to coach an NBA team and now almost everyone would hire him in a heartbeat.
And I absolutely agree with the idea that getting that team ready to play Game 7 last year might have been Pop's finest moment. Most teams would have gotten destroyed in that Game 7, given what had just happened to that team. The fact that those guys got off the mat and played their guts out, despite their disappointments, was maybe the greatest testament to "The Spurs Way" that we've ever seen.
That last paragraph...
Great article thanks for sharing.
Were you there for the river parade in 1999? Pop just had the world pulled off his shoulders when AJ hit that shot. You should have seen the way he was doing awkward white man dancing the entire time. I know they show it briefly in the credits of the 1999 Champions video, but he was doing that the entire time.
I'll never forget the feeling after Game 6, and the image of Tim walking to the team bus.
I remember being there and taking pictures as the different player boats went by. I also remember the march from the Riverwalk to the Alamodome for the celebration. I was 11 and it was awesome.Were you there for the river parade in 1999? Pop just had the world pulled off his shoulders when AJ hit that shot. You should have seen the way he was doing awkward white man dancing the entire time. I know they show it briefly in the credits of the 1999 Champions video, but he was doing that the entire time.
The other big one is that the Spurs had experience in dealing with the refs ing them... Dallas had such a free ride to the finals that year (from the refs - remember the 50 FT game, Duncan Fouling out when Harris tripped over his own feet and fell into him, at the end of regular time game 7, it's tied, our last chance to score, Manu drives, and gets fouled twice with no call, Duncan goes up and gets the re-bound, and get fouled 3 times himself, also with no calls...). The Mavs basically went into shock when the refs turned against them. They really couldn't deal with the change in the emphasis of the referreeing.
It was a ball-sweatingly hot 103 that day; I drove to the Dome.
Damn, what a great, great article. Just awesome...
me, what a great article.
I felt many feels.
Pop should thank Johnson everyday for saving his job, tbh.
Well put, well put
Excellent piece by Stien. The stuff about Doc/Houston game was interesting.
I remember being with friends and thinking how much better we were than the Knicks. We had trouble scoring and it was frustrating but the ending was never in doubt. From that standpoint a championship this year will be so much sweeter. When Avery hit that shot we all just kind of looked at each other. Nothing. Celebrate, wipe brow, high 5s...? Nothing.Were you there for the river parade in 1999? Pop just had the world pulled off his shoulders when AJ hit that shot. You should have seen the way he was doing awkward white man dancing the entire time. I know they show it briefly in the credits of the 1999 Champions video, but he was doing that the entire time.
From an SA standpoint, award winning.
Wow, how could that ever be any Spurs fan's reaction at the time with the way they had lost so many times being so close? Blowing a 3-1 lead to Washington in the 79 ECF? Gilmore not able to score from 2 feet to force a game 7 in the 83 WCF? Strickland throwing away a Game 7 win and a sure Finals trip with less than a minute left in Portland? The Spurs rallying from 0-2 to knot the WCF at 2-2 with two huge wins in Houston only to have Rodman miss practice and kill all the Spurs momentum before Game 5 of 95 WCF? Then things looking like they were over once the Spurs got bounced in the second round by Utah the next year? Robinson's back injury in the 96 Olympics? You're literally the only Spurs fan I have ever heard with a ho-hum reaction to that shot. I was watching with friends and family and we were going ing nuts when AJ hit that after Mario hit that huge three to tie the game. Not to mention New Orleans gunning to steal the team, which would have happened with a playoff flameout and a second failed arena vote after the first one went so badly the year before.
Last edited by baseline bum; 05-31-2014 at 11:21 AM.
Because it was so clear we had superior talent and we were going to win.
The Washington series was the worst thing I have ever experienced in sports.
Young age and the way my dad reacted.
Up to 99 with Robinson the thought was good guys can't win.
That was really the only sense of accomplishment, as it was so obvious we were so much better than the rest of the league. Portland folded like a cheap tent, the only team I was worried about.
We lost 2 games in the playoffs I believe. We were simply the best. This year we are much less talented and really have to play well to win. In 99 it seemed as we could miss shots all day long and still smother the opposition.
Last edited by pgardn; 05-31-2014 at 03:28 PM.
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