NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: SPURS v SUNS

May 28, 2005

Gregg Popovich

COACH POPOVICH: Just dandy, how are you? That's a stall tactic (laughter.)

COACH POPOVICH: I think we waste a lot less time trying to make things happen because oftentimes when you try to make things happen it just doesn't work out that way. You might spend too much time trying to make somebody slow down or speed up and as long as the game is going fine, we're willing to just put the people on the floor that we think are playing well, put the people on the floor that match up with the opponent. That it seems to work fine for us.

COACH POPOVICH: I feel sort of like I am just along for the ride (laughs.)

It's a weird feeling because that's not who we are. That's how not how we play all season long. There are times when players make great plays just like on any team and there are times when we score a lot of points. But it's not a night-in, night-out thing for us. We're supposed to be holding people 85, 89, 92, that sort of thing. And all of a sudden, it looks like this. But I really do think it's a product of possessions and something that I have just gotten used to during the season when you play Dallas or Seattle or Phoenix, even some teams in the East, with that many possessions in the 24 second clock the scores are going to be different. I am probably a little paranoid that it means the defense is awful, I still believe that -- but (laughter) it's probably got as much to do with the number of possessions as it does defense that's poor.

COACH POPOVICH: Well, I think more people will be ready to look at their team and see if it fits. Obviously your personnel dictates some of things you do on the court offensively, so I think teams will be more ready to look and say, well, I think we can go small here or maybe this will work because of the people they have to play against also. It's hard to cover. You got to cover it.

COACH POPOVICH: I think that Manu (Ginobili) and Tony (Parker) require that if we just came down in the half court, ran a 7 every time with Manu an Tony we would be so much less productive and so much more obvious. I don't think it would help us very much. Their game is based on speed to some degree and chaos to some degree; controlled hopefully to some -- in some way shape or form, but they are a real -- their best play comes out when I just let them go a bit more and I call plays. We just have a motion set and they can do a variety of things out of that motion. And I am not even going to know what they are going to do. I don't think they do either. They will just take advantage of what is given.

COACH POPOVICH: I think the ball goes to Timmy an appropriate number of times. What is great about Tony (Parker) and Manu (Ginobili) is that Tony will come over to me as much as I will go to him. He will say, Pop, last 3 and a half minutes Timmy hasn't touched the ball and you know, we'll do something about it. But when all is said and done and when it's money time, in some fashion, the ball goes through Timmy or he's involved in the play either directly or indirectly, has to be covered so that Tony or Manu or Brent (Barry) or someone else can get someone else can get what we want them to have. It doesn't mean Timmy is either or. He's involved in all that motion and he's an option all the time. It's just that Manu has risen to a point where he's a pretty confident player and he had had a lot of success so he's keeping the ball in his hands a little bit more than probably last season.

COACH POPOVICH: Well, you know, if he's Joe Johnson that played during the season, he's going to add a lot to their team. It's not just his 3-point shooting, but he's been good in their pick and roll, gives them another guy to play in the pick and roll situation. He's been a post-up player. He's guarded ones, twos and threes. He's hit the boards. He gives them depth. They are a better basketball team with Joe Johnson at both ends of the court.