Pop Rant x2

[FromWayDowntown]

this is clearly not just ONE game, lol.
Im talking about the season as a whole.

If you think that we can get it done and win another playing like this, then that's your opinion. But don't be sad when we come up short.
Like I said, if anyone reads my post. This is not going to last. Even when we had our full line-up, we still were not together. I am speaking in long-term, and this is not over one game, lol.

So, Pop's a failure if the Spurs don't win the le in '09?

29 teams are going to come up short; odds are, the Spurs will be one of them. I'm not sure that your criticisms of things like not playing Malik Hairston and not keeping Pops Mensah-Bonsu would have diminished those odds at all. In fact, doing what you propose might very well have cost the Spurs seeding and further increased the likelihood of not winning the le.

Beyond that, I think most of your criticisms of Popovich are pointless and ignore facts. Pop's rotations and personnel choices are guided, in my mind, by 3 extremely significant facts: (1) the Spurs aren't playing to build teams into the future -- they're playing to win now; (2) the Spurs are good enough to believe they'll face different challenges in trying to get through a rigorous western conference bracket -- having been caught with his pants down once (in 2006), Pop's preparing for as many possibilities as he can; and (3) unlike most seasons in the past, Pop's team has been absolutely riddled with injuries, including injuries to his 3 best players at varying points in time.

With all of those truths in mind, what else is it that you want Pop to have done? You want him to win now, but you want him to build for the future. You want him to play a set rotation, no matter the injuries. You want him to be ready to win a le, but do nothing to prepare his team to play in the various ways they'll have to play to win a le.

[Yogurt210]

If anything Pop fully deserves COY this season, he has done much better than any fan or pundit could have expected giving the ci stances, but I'll let you get your knee jerk reactions over a regular season loss to a lesser team.Like that's never happened before in the history of Spurstalk, I've been around for years, mostly lurking because of the excessive trolling, and over this period of time there have been countless of overreactions like yours, some of them with more reason and facts to support them.

I'm not playing a better fan than thou game here so there's no need to get defensive. Just read some of the comments by knowledgeable posters such as FromWayDowntown, Timvp, etc. and you'll probably get to know the game and the Spurs better.

also, take nothing away from these individuals but what why do you mention FromWayDownTown and Timvp as the only people that are knowledgable? Brown-nose much? We are all fans here, en led to our own opinions. So who gives a , talk about me all you want. So shoot down my post and every other poster who says something negative about the Spurs, just so you can look/feel cool.
Everyone knows that whoring forums and hopping on people’s , gets you far in life. Nothing is perfect, and I hate to break it to you peeps on here, but either is POP or the Spurs. You act like everything he does has a reason to it, or he’s acting like CIA POP. I come to see, that a lot of people here on these forums are blind.

[BG_Spurs_Fan]

also, take nothing away from these individuals but what why do you mention FromWayDownTown and Timvp as the only people that are knowledgable? Brown-nose much? We are all fans here, en led to our own opinions. So who gives a , talk about me all you want. So shoot down my post and every other poster who says something negative about the Spurs, just so you can look/feel cool.
Everyone knows that whoring forums and hopping on people’s , gets you far in life. Nothing is perfect, and I hate to break it to you peeps on here, but either is POP or the Spurs. You act like everything he does has a reason to it, or he’s acting like CIA POP. I come to see, that a lot of people here on these forums are blind.

Jeez! I never said they were the only knowledgeable people here. Are you familiar with this little reading comprehension thing? Whoring? Are you 15?

And damn right - I do think everything Pop does is for a reason. Duh. That doesn't mean he's faultless, nobody's claiming this.

[Yogurt210]

^im done with you. lol

[superbigtime]

besides Orlando, Milwaukee (), and Cleveland (who we've only played once), we've beaten every playoff team from both conferences this season. Who else are we supposed to beat?

Who else???
Dallas -- we have lost to them twice. We have lost to Portland twice. We have lost to the Lakers twice. We have lost to Orlando twice. We have lost to Denver twice (granted, one where Pop sat half the team).

We gave away that New Orleans game in December then got our ass whipped by Orlando.

Losing to the Knicks AND Toronto? o.

We are NEVER supposed to lose to a team like the Thunder, a team with 6 years in the NBA between their starters.

The ty game against Detroit.

We have eked out 4 last second wins...barely squeaked out a win against the Clips.

How bout the 19 point loss to Houston after Thanksgiving where tim was 6 of 18?

We haven't had many "quality losses." The game at Denver where Pop sat everyone comes to mind.

[Agloco]

Well, if your going to shrug this kinda stuff off, and watch the spurs slowly lose it. Then hey , that’s you. Don’t expect much come playoff time. And its not just 1 game, it’s been an overall season. I am from SA Town born and raised, spurs fan since I was crawling, so I’m def. not a bandwagoner. No sir. When I see something wrong with my team and nothing is being done for 1 game or for a whole season, I will be sure to express it. That’s how real fans are. Up’s and downs, yes. A lot of those UPS could have easily been downs. I think this year was our worst rodeo road trip correct?

They went 5-3 in 2007........

That was a championship year correct?

I also don't see how Pop is failing as a coach this year. Take away the 2-5 start and you have a 43-17 record. That's right there with the best of them. Considering the injuries we've had and how hobbled we are now, I'd say Pop is doing a yeoman job.

[BG_Spurs_Fan]

^im done with you. lol

You're good at being owned by everyone and not being able to recognize it. Way to go dude.

[Agloco]

also, take nothing away from these individuals but what why do you mention FromWayDownTown and Timvp as the only people that are knowledgable? Brown-nose much? We are all fans here, en led to our own opinions. So who gives a , talk about me all you want. So shoot down my post and every other poster who says something negative about the Spurs, just so you can look/feel cool.
Everyone knows that whoring forums and hopping on people’s , gets you far in life. Nothing is perfect, and I hate to break it to you peeps on here, but either is POP or the Spurs. You act like everything he does has a reason to it, or he’s acting like CIA POP. I come to see, that a lot of people here on these forums are blind.

Apparently, you do......

Fortunately for the rest of us your opinions are of little consequence.

[Duncan2177]

the only team we currently have no chance of beating in a 7 game series is the Lakers. Magic flounder come playoff time, and I don't trust the Cavs supporting cast come playoff time either.

If the spurs are 100% healthy we have a great chance beating the 3 teams you mentioned, Show some optimism please.

[senorglory]

1.) Bowen's skills have declined.
2.) Spurs offensive scheme looks for more offense to avoid those stretches of non-scoring that plagued the Spurs the past few seasons.
3.) Spurs season started with an inordinate number of injuries to key players, notably keeping out starters Parker and Manu from a good number of games early in the season, and depriving the Spurs of last years rotation of big men, Oberto and Thomas, for a good portion of the season.
4.) Spurs have added Mason, Hill, and Gooden this year, and developed Bonner into a first year starter. Spurs have also incorporated Udoka as a defensive stopper, and are potentially developing Hariston and/or Mahinmi for contributions down the road. The ac ulated effect of these additions is both athleticism and youth.
5.) This Spurs team is deeper than many of the Spurs teams of years past.
6.) Spurs currently ranked first in Western Conference in points allowed (a reasonable measure of team defense?), and ranked second in point differential (a reasonable measure of team success?).
7.) Spurs made it to the Western Conference Finals last season, and despite the 4-1 loss, were not blown out of the water. Lost a close one, got blown out, blew the Lakers out, lost a close one, and lost the final game (handily, tis true). Not a performance that should trigger panic mode. A healthy Manu and that series looks dramatically different.
8.) Spurs record... I won't even bother to recite, everyone here should have at least a vague understanding of their consistent high level of performance during Pop's association with the team: lots of 50+ seasons, lots of playoff appearances, lots of WCF, lots of rings... and lots of love. It's a great ball club.

[Agloco]

1.) Bowen's minutes have declined.
2.) Spurs offensive scheme looks for more offense to avoid those stretches of non-scoring that plagued the Spurs the past few seasons.
3.) Spurs season started with an inordinate number of injuries to key players, notably keeping out starters Parker and Manu from a good number of games early in the season, and depriving the Spurs of last years rotation of big men, Oberto and Thomas, for a good portion of the season.
4.) Spurs have added Mason, Hill, and Gooden this year, and developed Bonner into a first year starter. Spurs have also incorporated Udoka as a defensive stopper, and are potentially developing Hariston and/or Mahinmi for contributions down the road. The ac ulated effect of these additions is both athleticism and youth.
5.) This Spurs team is deeper than many of the Spurs teams of years past.
6.) Spurs currently ranked first in Western Conference in points allowed (a reasonable measure of team defense?), and ranked second in point differential (a reasonable measure of team success?).
7.) Spurs made it to the Western Conference Finals last season, and despite the 4-1 loss, were not blown out of the water. Lost a close one, got blown out, blew the Lakers out, lost a close one, and last the final game (handily, tis true). Not a performance that should trigger panic mode. A healthy Manu and proper officiating and that series looks dramatically different.
8.) Spurs record... I won't even bother to recite, everyone here should have at least a vague understanding of their consistent high level of performance during Pop's association with the team: lots of 50+ seasons, lots of playoff appearances, lots of WCF, lots of rings... and lots of love. It's a great ball club.

Fixed....

Other than that, I agree.

[Summers]

I spelled wine like that on purpose…haha
Uh oh, it’s the over-educated spell-checker/grammar fixer/l337 speaker forum master, lmao!
Give it a break kid, no one cares about ing grammar on a forum. I know it makes you feel special when you try to correct people.
Go do something worth your time, something else that makes you feel special that actually matters. You superman re , lol

Well, some of us do, but don't go around correcting people. Bad writing is like bad hygiene. It doesn't make you wrong, but it's awfully distracting.

[manufor3]

louis?

[Morg1411]

Well, some of us do, but don't go around correcting people. Bad writing is like bad hygiene. It doesn't make you wrong, but it's awfully distracting.

Agreed. Bad writing is also awfully discrediting. You could make the most valid argument in the world, but if your grammar and spelling abilities are on par with those of a brain-addled 9-year-old, few are going to take your posts seriously.

*Edit: I noted a spelling error in my post, and corrected it. Novel, eh?

[Yogurt210]

As I was saying...this hasnt been over a span of 1 game people, lol...back to back loses ftw.

[Yuixafun]

Alright basketball expert, who should coach the team instead?

And NOT, this year's road trip was NOT.

As far as win/loss ratio it wasn't the worst..

In terms of fostering chemistry, developing that Us vs the world mentality, since you only have your mates in hostile territory to rely on, which gives the team that edge, wolfpack mentality.. it was not productive as its been in the past. And for this roster that's intergrating new pieces that sort of road trip development would have been valuable.

The Spurs flew back home 2-3 times and Pop afterwards was bothered and disappointed by the disjointed nature of this years RRT.

[to21]

Tinkering with the lineup so late in the season, trying experiments at backup point guard, his man-love for Fin, and weird rotations are all that concern me. Other than that, the guy's still has my vote....

BTW, I cringe when I hear the words "CIA Pop", wasn't it the CIA who said Iraq had WPD....just saying.

[CIA Pop]

BTW, I cringe when I hear the words "CIA Pop", wasn't it the CIA who said Iraq had WPD....just saying.

Don't get my CIA confused with those ups in the White House (either the previous set or the current set).

[to21]

Don't get my CIA confused with those ups in the White House (either the previous set or the current set).

no disrespect to ur handle.

[manubili]

Yeah right. Pop doesn't like athletism. That's why he trusts players like Parker and Manu, widely known beacause of being stiff and slow.

[Yogurt210]

yup Im brining this post back, since everyone seems to realize now, hahahaha.

[iamdmann]

besides Orlando, Milwaukee (), and Cleveland (who we've only played once), we've beaten every playoff team from both conferences this season. Who else are we supposed to beat?

Oklahoma city thunder when we play them a week after they come back from 20 down. Two days after tony goes on abc and says he doesn't get motivated for the crap teams that aren't going anywhere. And then barely shows up. It doesn't matter how many points tony scores. The numbers that matter are in two columns. One is labeled W and one is labelled L

[ManuTastic]

So, this guy was right. It's now clear Pop has been f'ing up this team. Primarily by benching Bowen and Hill in favor of Finley and Udoka, and by screwing with what was working: Mason as the starting SG AND NOT backup PG.

[Yogurt210]

POP SUCKS. what now people?

[redskinfan]

POP SUCKS. what now people?

I agree yogurt, Pop is too smart for his own good, and all these ass clowns who defend every move by the professor( he is looking like Adelman more and more) can go and f**k t themselves.