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NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: SPURS v LAKERSMay 29, 2008Gregg PopovichLOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Game Five Q. Your thoughts on what the NBA came out with a statement last night regarding the foul. COACH POPOVICH: I have no idea. Q. You have no idea? COACH POPOVICH: No, I don't know what you're talking about. Q. The NBA last night essentially came out with a statement saying there should have been a foul called on Derek Fisher and it should have been a two-shot foul. That came from the NBA office last night. COACH POPOVICH: Oh, thank you, that's a great help. I'll send some flowers to the NBA. That's great. I don't read that stuff, so I don't know. Doesn't do me any good to read it. Q. If I'm correct, which is not always -- very rare at times, you guys didn't shoot around today. Was there a reason? COACH POPOVICH: We did that very often during the year. It's not something that's new. I'm going to guess here, probably -- I'm guessing 20 games we didn't shoot-around game day. Q. Just rest? COACH POPOVICH: Yeah, I think they get -- I think they get tired of the same old -- it was one less mental appearance and one less physical appearance that's a fake physical appearance. It doesn't do anything anyway. And when you figure all the games and all that sort of thing during the season, we just think maybe it gives them a break mentally to not have to do something and hear me again and go over the same stuff again. So we did it quite often. Q. Obviously any championship is a great achievement and four in nine years is great, too. Did the idea of repeating hold any added value? Did you throw that out as a goal in the years where you guys were coming off? COACH POPOVICH: Nope, I have never mentioned it one time. Maybe that's my problem. I don't know (laughter). Maybe I should have a big sign that says that every year. But, no, we've always thought that, you know, if we won a championship, that's great. If it so happened we won a championship in a year where we had won one previously, then it would be call add repeat. But other than that, it doesn't mean much to me. Q. Is it safe to say it is exponentially harder to do it again? When you talk about the things that have to go right, you can't have injuries, it depends on all these different things, is it that much harder to do it two years in a row? COACH POPOVICH: I think so. Like when the Lakers won three in a row and Chicago won a gazillion in a row, I think that's pretty impressive stuff, without any doubt. And the reason you want to repeat is that means you won another championship. I don't think you go into the year saying we want to repeat. You want to win a championship. Q. The league also says it plans on coming down on flopping next season by fining players that they find flopping. What are your thoughts on flopping? COACH POPOVICH: I think that's great. I don't know exactly what their plan is, but it's pretty tough on officials. Players flop from -- on every team, somebody flops here and there, without a doubt, and puts on the act. I don't think anybody does it any more than anybody else, but if there is a way to eliminate it, it would be great for basketball. I just don't know how you do that. Q. When did you notice flopping became such a big deal? Flopping in the past seems like players had more pride, that they didn't want to let somebody knock them down. Now it is like if someone breathes on them, the guys want to hit the floor. COACH POPOVICH: That's a good thought. I hate to indict current players' characters, saying that players who used to play had more pride. I think that would be kind of dangerous because players today have a lot of pride also. But, you know, just probably overly philosophical, but flopping is just probably another part of a reflection of our society, you know, the fiber weakening and not being as strong as it has been (smiling). Maybe that's the same as reality shows on T.V. and maybe the same genre, weak spirit, weak fiber. Let's keep going. This is fun. Game's not for an hour and a half. I don't want to sit there and be scared to death for an hour and a half. End of FastScripts |
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