Yo Pop

[T Park]

add on the traveling turnover Ginobili had.

[IceColdBrewski]

what if pop got a t?

For yelling at his team from the sidelines? That'd be a first for me.

[FromWayDowntown]

There is absolutely nothing wrong with playing in top form at the beginning of the season as long as you can also play your best in the playoffs. That said, what the Spurs brought in the 4th quarter today was nowhere close to their best effort, so I guess you should be happy.

Look, I'm all about a good effort, but I also understand that with a long season, the teams that prevail in the end will be playing their best basketball at the end. Teams that get out like gangbusters have a tendency to slide late -- I realize that these guys are professional athletes, but it's damned near impossible for anyone to sustain that level of focus and excellence for 6 months without a few letups along the way. Better that they suffer a let-up in late November than in late April or May, as far as I'm concerned.

I don't like the loss, but I'm also not sitting here thinking that the loss is the result of incompetence, or a poorly-constructed team, or a lack of quality players, or any of the usual lines that Spurs fans use to start fests. It was a bad loss. That's all.

[FromWayDowntown]

Screaming and yelling to light a fire under their asses and stop the bleeding? Yes.

He can't always scream and yell -- if he did, the importance of what he had to say would be lost on players who'd heard screaming and yelling when it really wasn't all that important. These guys are professionals, not a high school varsity, and they must be accountable for finding their own motivation. Popovich knows that his team is going to reach the playoffs and likely will do so with a very high seed, so he's building his team right now. Part of that building process is putting them in adverse situations and allowing them to either find their way out or to suffer the consequences. Today, they suffered the consequences. If they can't take motivation from that, then Pop has something to yell about.

[ducks]

sometimes a t will get the team going

[IceColdBrewski]

He can't always scream and yell -- if he did, the importance of what he had to say would be lost on players who'd heard screaming and yelling when it really wasn't all that important. These guys are professionals, not a high school varsity, and they must be accountable for finding their own motivation. Popovich knows that his team is going to reach the playoffs and likely will do so with a very high seed, so he's building his team right now. Part of that building process is putting them in adverse situations and allowing them to either find their way out or to suffer the consequences. Today, they suffered the consequences. If they can't take motivation from that, then Pop has something to yell about.

i'm not talking about screaming and yelling just to demean them. I'm talkin about yelling instructions. Stuff like, "Defense", and "Parker, guard that little er". You know. Stuff that would have helped.

Good post though.

[IceColdBrewski]

sometimes a t will get the team going

very true

[FromWayDowntown]

i'm not talking about screaming and yelling just to demean them. I'm talkin about yelling instructions. Stuff like, "Defense", and "Parker, guard that little er".

So you want him to yell things at them that they already know? I guess I just don't get that idea. I suspect, after all of these years, that they know they're supposed to play defense and that each player knows to guard the man he's responsible for. If that's the breakdown that you saw, then I absolutely 100% disagree with your position -- it would have been a pointless (and maybe even self-defeating) exercise.

[T Park]

Doesnt Pop yell enough??


You yell too much, and then the team will tune him out.


Pinning the loss on Pop, because he "didnt yell enough" is weak.

Not playing Nesterovic and Bowen? Alright rip his ass on that cause I agree.

[IceColdBrewski]

Doesnt Pop yell enough??


You yell too much, and then the team will tune him out.


Pinning the loss on Pop, because he "didnt yell enough" is weak.

You're totally missing my point. I'm in about Pop not showing any emotion when the team was in the midst of a defensive collapse.

[IceColdBrewski]

... also, how come pop doesn't yell at udrih like he did tparker??

Because Beno doesn't make the boneheaded mistakes that Parker always made.

[T Park]

ohhh not showing emotion.

Well, if only he was like ron artest....


This showing emotion BS is so over rated

[FromWayDowntown]

I'm in about Pop not showing any emotion when the team was in the midst of a defensive collapse.

Showing emotion doesn't mean screaming and yelling -- screaming and yelling is often a sign that you lack poise and are panicking.

Pop's a very bright man who seems to be really in tune with his team and its needs. Today, he must have believed that it was worthwhile for them to try to find their own way out of the woods. That decision may pay off in the end. Patience, people. Patience.

[Marcus Bryant]

Patience, people. Patience.

Remember these are Spurs fans you are responding to.

[FromWayDowntown]

Remember these are Spurs fans you are responding to.

I forget that occasionally.