Das Texan Posted December 9, 2003 Share Posted December 9, 2003 Popovich has fun with Spurs' 'too nice' rep December 9, 2003 BY LACY J. BANKS SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST http://www.suntimes.com/output/banks/cst-spt-banx09.html Spurs coach Gregg Popovich still gets a kick out of critics slighting his defending champs as being too nice to be noticed, especially mild-mannered MVP Tim Duncan, after their Finals series against the Nets set record lows in television ratings. ''It's an indictment of the times,'' said Popovich, last season's Coach of the Year. ''Flash sells more than substance. It's an instant-gratification deal we live in. Look at TV, look at commercials, look at everything. Anybody who understands the game is awed by [Duncan]. Just in awe about the way he plays, the way he conducts himself, the fundamental soundness of his game and all the things he does at both ends of the court. ''Those who don't think he's sexy or flashy or verbal enough, it says more about them than it says about Tim. Luckily, he has the intelligence and maturity to understand that and care less. All he wants to do is play, win, enjoy his wife and friends. He has the priorities you want your kids to have. But the world does not work that way.'' Popovich has been defending his team for years. He desires no change. But to show that he's less the stolid stiff of an interview he used to be, Popovich now indulges in a little humor about the subject. ''We've changed our rules,'' Popovich said jokingly. ''Now, if a player does not have an altercation on or off the court once each month, we fine him. I've tried to get this into the press, but people won't pay attention. And the guys who are our top four scorers, each of them will be required once every two months to appear on MTV. ''And the guys who shoot the worst free throws over a one-month period, the next time we have a TV game, they are required to look into the camera and beat their chests after they make a good play. I think then we will have a little bit different reputation. But I think I'll have to force-feed this because the guys won't do this on their own. ''They're very hard to coach and very difficult to get along with. So I'm going to just lie my [butt] off and tell everybody that nobody is getting along, I don't really want to coach here, they don't really want me to coach here, the players don't like each other and we got a lot of bad stuff going on. I think the ratings will go up then.'' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Posted December 9, 2003 Share Posted December 9, 2003 THIS IS GOLD! A couple of my favorites: ''We've changed our rules,'' Popovich said jokingly. ''Now, if a player does not have an altercation on or off the court once each month, we fine him." ''They're very hard to coach and very difficult to get along with. So I'm going to just lie my [butt] off and tell everybody that nobody is getting along" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Das Texan Posted December 9, 2003 Author Share Posted December 9, 2003 We need to be more TrailBlazer like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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