NBA FINALS: PISTONS v SPURS

June 17, 2005

Gregg Popovich

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: They are great guys. You know, I think it's on them. Some people are more coachable than others. Some people are more objective. Some people are more ready to listen. Some people can be criticized easier than others. I'm blessed with a group that understands that we're going to be straightforward, that we're never going to play psychological games with them. We're going to tell them what they do well, what they do poorly, and we expect them to do their jobs just like the lawyer, the plumber or the truck driver or whoever else has a job.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: No, because it's the kind of people they are, very honestly. You know, they are guys that care about the whole more than the part, and we try to do that research ahead of time before we bring somebody in. It makes things a lot easier.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: I think it's an odd thing, because what you say is true, you wouldn't look and say, he's going to be in the Hall of Fame, he's going to be in the Hall of Fame. But, at the same time, they have three or four players who are basically All-Star caliber players, so they are right there and they have a lot of them. You know, when you look at Chauncey, you look at Rip, you look at Tayshaun, you look at Rasheed, those are guys that are all capable of being on an All-Star team. They are very talented. The fact that this guy or this guy hasn't been named is irrelevant, really.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: No. Our halfcourt defense is very good. If you would have told me before these games that we're going to handle Rasheed and Rip and Tayshaun the way we have, I would have been thrilled. So the halfcourt defense is good, what stinks are the boards and the turnovers. As you know, after Game 3, that was a huge priority for us, and on the boards, we really improved a lot. We only gave up 19 instead of 20 on second-chance points. And on the turnovers, we gave up 23 in Game 3 and we gave up 25 last night. So my speech was not heeded very well, or, you know, maybe I didn't say it loudly enough, but that's where their points are coming from. It's been two games in a row like that, and if you give them those points, you're in trouble because at the same time, you're not scoring because you just gave the ball up or you gave them that many more possessions. So it's a double whammy, and that's what's going on. I think, well, why is it going on? Well, it's going on because we've succumbed to their physical play in my opinion. They have raised the bar in physicality. They do not want to give up the ring and we have not met that challenge to date in Games 3 and 4.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: Well, both teams are going to have the same players that they had Games 1 through 4, so the same guys are going to play and we're not going to change who is going to be on the court. These are the guys that have played all year long. So the rotation won't change in that regard. But the bench was awful. You know, we got nothing off the bench last night in any way, shape or form at either end of the floor. And that's not going to work. So we have several individuals that need to play better, without a doubt, both starters and bench people. We don't have too many people that one would say played well in Games 3 and 4.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: You know, Chauncey is -- I think he's done a masterful job in Games 3 and 4, because he's shown a great balance in running the team, pushing it when necessary, getting people set when necessary, scoring when necessary, being that decision-maker, to be aggressive, to be in attack mode, but keep it under control so to speak and have some sense to it. I think he's done a great job of it.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: Well, I don't really know. We're not a team that forces many turnovers. That's not one of our fortes. It never has been. So that doesn't concern me that much. The other end of it concerns me, how many they are forcing.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: Sure, that's part of it.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: Well, Tim has not had the greatest of games in Games 3 and 4. He's the center of what we do. He's important. We score differently than Detroit does. We're an inside-out team. We're going to have something inside going with Tim and spacing the floor is important to us in that regard. So if we don't really have the inside-out game, it takes a lot away from what we're doing.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: Well, he's going to try to have the best possible game. He's not going to pout, he's not going to feel badly, he's going to be disappointed with himself for not playing better, and he's going to, you know, try to -- he'll look at the film and he'll try to figure out what he can do to score, what he can do to help the team. That's just the way he's built.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: Well, it works really in the other direction; we have to establish the inside first.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: I'm very surprised by that. I would that thought coming in that it's going to be in the fourth quarter and it's going to be 78-76, whoever doesn't turn it over or makes a shot in the last couple of minutes is going to win the game. I'm very surprised the way the play has been through the first four games. And it is 2-2, that's a fact. Everything is even. Both teams have done their job so to speak. But I think there's one difference: I think I'm really concerned about the way we've reacted to their physical play. That really bothers me, and I think that that's got to be handled or we're going to have a problem.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: No. We have several. That's a team thing. I think overall, if you look at the turnovers last night, it wasn't one guy, you know, it's spread across. We have three or four guys with three turnovers and a couple other ones with two, three guys with one, that sort of stuff. So as a team, I think that Ben and Lindsey have done a hell of a job of setting the tone for those guys, and they have all bought in and they have all done it and we've backed off from it. Ben didn't try any less in San Antonio. It's not like he decided he wasn't going to play 1 and 2 and he's going to play 3 and 4. He's not built like that. Ben goes out and does his job for 48 minutes every night. Lindsey is the same way. We didn't allow them to do that in San Antonio. We had five guys going to the boards and it helped take Ben away a little bit. We had guys being strong with the ball. We were in attack mode and we didn't sit back and pound it. So I think they have really put us on our heels, led by those two guys.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: No, it's always tougher to teach a guy to be a good defender, because you have to have a willing candidate, and there are not that many guys who are willing to buy in and make it something that's going to have to be focused on day after day through a whole season. Everybody wants to score. Everybody wants to shoot. Fewer people want to fill roles, know their strengths and weakness, concentrate on their strengths. Even if their weakness is shooting or offense, they always think that they can get better, and to a degree they can. But there's a ceiling on everybody, and if you can find players who understand that ceiling and are willing to work at the other end of the court, then you've got something special. Bruce is a good example of that. He's not the most effective offensive player, but he's figured out what he can do offensively to stay on the court because he's such a good defender. So if he was trying to do things at the offensive end that hurt his team, it would diminish what he does defensively and he would be sitting. But he's smart enough not to do that. There are not too many guys like that.

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: And you bought that? And you bought that? (Laughter) How long have you been covering Larry? Good, Lord. I wish Doug Moe was here. He would give you a good answer. (Laughter).

COACH GREGG POPOVICH: I want to beat him by 50. The hell with him. (Laughter). No, he's right. It's a strange deal. You know, you guys, when you've known somebody that long and this sort of thing, it was really true. It sounds weird, it sounds strange, but when we won the first two games, sure, I was thrilled about it and I wouldn't give them back, but when I saw Coach, it was like, "How you doing, Coach?" And you don't say -- no real words come out, you just sort of mumble, because you feel bad for the other guy, and that's what he did last night. He felt bad for me personally, but he's not going to give them back, you know. So that's just an irrelevant little side note. (Laughter).