Popovich has become NBAs Bill Belichick

[FromWayDowntown]

"remarkable ... to see Pop interact with players who have never been Spurs"

... evident when Pop coached the West All-Stars a couple years ago, even if that activity is pretty much a love-fest anyway.

Yeah, that too.

[Brutalis]

whoever compares him to that cheating . Pop is more successful and carries more class than that hippie clown ever will.

[slayermin]

whoever compares him to that cheating . Pop is more successful and carries more class than that hippie clown ever will.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

Great article.

It has been fascinating to watch Pop grow as a coach. Back in the Dark Age that followed the first ring (2000-2002), many called for Pop's head and, truth be told, he was not anything like the coach he is today - he made some poor decisions with games on the line, found it hard to adjust to cir stances on the fly, and couldn't seem to get his team over the hump. Everything changed in 2003, specifically game 6 of the WCSFs when he and his team finally beat the Lakers, and the rest of that playoff run became his coming out parade. From that moment on he has grown into one of the greatest NBA coaches of all time.

I can see how this will all pan out. He and Tim will win 2-3 more rings, and then retire together in 2012. Pop will go off to coach the Olympics, Timmy will play X-Box and manage his charitable interests, and the greatest era in Spurs basketball history will come to a close. A sad day it will be, but thankfully still 5 years away...

[inconvertible]

run up the score pop, RUN IT UP!

[LEONARD]

Pop cheats too??

[SpursFanFirst]

I had figured that it was Pop's close association with Larry Brown, coupled with the bad taste of 2004 -- and only those things -- that had caused USA Basketball to gravitate to Coach K. I can, however, completely see someone like Colangelo finding reasons to doubt Pop's enthusiasm for a project. I don't get the sense that Pop would be the sort of person who would just be gushing in a conversation about a job like coaching USA basketball; I somehow believe that he would be earnest about his willingness to take the position and frank about his needs in that position.

What's always been remarkble to me is to see Pop interact with players who have never been Spurs, but who were on teams that Pop coached. You see guys from the 2003 qualifying team and the 2004 Olympic team making a specific point to go by the Spurs bench before games to give Pop a quick hug and to say something. It always appears to be a warm exchange and mutually respectful. You see it too, I think, with the way that Pop deals with PR situations involving opposing players -- his lashing out at fans for booing Kobe in 2003-04; his immediate withdrawal from the Pop Show after Walter and Vex unfairly portrayed Allen Iverson. Pop's a coach who definitely has the backs of players and they, in turn, appreciate him for that. In a day and age where players are routinely ripped for defying authority figures, Pop is one authority figure who seems to have earned fairly-universal respect. To miss out on the opportunity to have that guy lead your team because he didn't kiss your ass enough is probably, as much as anything, an indictment of the failed bureaucracy within USA Basketball.

I'd love to read what Pop wrote to Colangelo.

Colangelo is undoubtedly an extremely successful businessman. His business has mostly been sports, specifically the Suns, and he grew that franchise into one of the winningest clubs in the NBA during his ownership, even without winning championships. But, I'd agree with the notion that success in that realm is substantially unrelated to success in resurrecting an endeavor like USA Basketball, where a le is the only acceptable result. I wonder why so many find Colangelo to be such a go-to guy on projects like that. It doesn't seem that he has a resume to create such wide-spread support. And passing on Pop under these cir stances just looks foolish.

Truly, FWD...I always enjoy reading your posts. They're always well written and thought provoking. I'm so glad you take the time to post here.

[timvp]

Bill Belick

The love child between Brian Billick and Bill Belichick?

[spurscenter]

well you know , I think they compare to Belichick only because of what the teams have done, multiple championships in 5-9 years or whatever.

I dont think you can compare a NBA coach with a NFL coach straight on.

I think the writer was more comparing the success of the teams.

pop is in a whole other level I think. He sets the mood of the organization from the front office to the 12th man