I am fairly certain we would have been last of those 3 teams in 2008.

He probably was gifted a new wine today, dont complain

    I don’t doubt that there will be some reaction from the league office, but I’m support Popovich on this one. The regular season is about 30 games too long. Quite frankly, if I were Popovich, I would have been doing this YEARS ago. Back before they had an inactive list, they used to make up injuries to hold guys out… I would have been sitting Duncan at least 20 games a year with chronic cases of 24-hour projectile leprosy. Manu would have had roughly 25 cases of acute meningeal encephalitis with unexplained remission.

   I think Pop would have enjoyed that…

I don’t know what to think, but fuck Stern, regardless.

I understand what Pop was thinking..coming from a overtime victory with the big 3 playing huge minutes and Finley too, we would have mostly likely lost in his eyes..so why not give the stars some rest.

But the fan in me wants to see our players play considering they have 5 days off before the Celtics game.And this is why I’m going to business school and Pop has 4 titles with the Spurs..he can coach and I can criticize from afar!

I understand giving the big 3 a rest but why against a team we could meet in playoff and not have HCA

And here I am thinking that he was tinkering around with the lineup last night!

Pop is going through an odd phase. The other night he started Kurt Thomas instead of Matt Bonner and he did it so suddenly not even the PA guy at the AT&T Center got the memo. Then he plays 4 guards and one small forward at the same time for 3 minutes in the second quarter of the Warriors game. Now he spontaneously rested 4 of the top 5 scorers on the team to make a point to NBA schedule makers, against a playoff contender. And then he almost coached them to a victory.

Just throwing this out there but in 2003 the Spurs sealed the best record and HCA throughout the playoffs right before the season ending, affording them one giveaway game. In 2004 the Lakers won a game against some team that bumped them up to their seeding and screwed us over. We won 11 games to end that season. I’m not condoning tossing away games, I’m actually really annoyed as you are. I figure the silver lining in this is that our bench guys got something out of this game, and the big 3 have no fatigue excuse to give come Sunday.

pop is going through the early stages of senility, and all the players are too scared to say anything about it.

but I don’t understand the timing. I don’t know what kind of weight to put on it, but I have always thought of pop as one of the, if not the, best coaches in the NBA

1. Before we bitch and moan too much about how this game affects us in the standings, let’s see how we play at Boston. I said after the Warriors game that I’d be happy to win one of the next two and we still may. If we lose that one (and the odds are that we will) THEN WE CAN BITCH.

2. I think Pop either underestimated his guys or overestimated Denver. We beat them on the road on earlier in the year when we played like absolute horseshit the game before vs. the Pistons and the Nugs were hot as hell. Denver always matches up poorly against us and I think we had a great shot to beat them. Even if Manu was only 80%, he has a great track record in segababas, despite the myth that he has less endurance than any other good player. Manu’s scoring average is better in segababas than any other situation.

3. It’d be one thing to rest the guys if the Boston game was Friday, but with it being Sunday, it’s kind of inexcusable.

4. If I’m Stern, or in any way affiliated with NBA.com or the Nuggets, I’m pissed at Pop. People paid good money in this shit economy to see two NBA teams compete at the peak of their respective abilities. They didn’t pay to see the home team throw their jerseys on the court and win. I know Pop has a responsibility to his team first and foremost, but this move was an insult to the game’s integrity and things like this is why the NBA has such an awful reputation with the casual sports fan. If the coaches don’t care about the regular season, why should the players? If Stern suspended Pop a game without pay, I think it’d be appropriate. If he’s going to rest his guys, why not rest himself as well? This is the most embarrassed I’ve been to be a Spurs fan since Horry hip-checked Nash at the end of Game 4 in 2007. Or maybe us not selling out the arena against the Jazz in the Western Conference Finals that same year. Pop’s really an arrogant prick sometimes.

5. Sometimes I really don’t think Pop understands why he and his players get paid such ridiculous salaries. Sure winning is the most important thing, but it’s not the only thing. Sports are entertainment at the end of the day and the paying customers want to think that the players and coaches appreciate them or are at least don’t think of their fans as a nuisance or a burden. Pop may not hate the fans, but he sure doesn’t do anything to keep them entertained – like having a garbage time guy like James White for example – and he’s never understood that the media is the conduit between the team and the fans. By treating the media like shit, Pop is indirectly treating the fans like shit. He acts like he’d rather play the games in empty arenas with no TV or radio coverage at all. He really doesn’t understand the point of having a professional league. Pop keeps telling the media that sports are unimportant and that people should be paying attention to the real news in Iraq or whatever, and this to me is retarded. He is actually encouraging the people who make his job possible to not be NBA fans. I don’t see Pop turning down his salary but he thinks the whole exercise is frivolous? Who the fuck does he think he is?

6. Finally, Matthew, I think you’re not giving yourself nearly enough credit. I’m positive Pop respects you far more than Craig Sager.

Oh come on, since when do we give a shit about one game? This is the same Pop that throws in the towel way in too early when we’re in double digit deficits against good teams.
If we’re gonna complain about one game costing us HCA then there’s about 20 games in a season that could’ve been won and weren’t. Are we the Suns now? Do we care about the regular season that much?
 It’s ridiculous that people gave Pop shit over this but nobody complains when during the last games of the season most good teams play all their scrubs while crappy teams are trying to fight their way into the postseason. Should fans feel slighted then? Or does it only count if we do it in the middle of the season?
I for one, feel proud to have a coach that would make this move. He just gave the NBA the equivalent of this:

on the plus side:

• we nearly won – i’m happy our scrubs did this well against the third placed team in the west
• giving those guys a good extended run helps them – well duh
• it certainly sends a message to stern and the league – if pop wanted to convey some disgust at scheduling (that is what it was about right?), he certainly did
• i admire the ballsy-ness (its a word, right?) of it – doing at the end of a season, or to rest players who can’t handle back-to-backs, sure, but mid-season, just to send a message?

on the negative side

• i really can’t fathom throwing a game when seeding hasn’t been decided – its not like they give out extra awards for making your playoff path more difficult
• it reeks of arrogance
• it was shit for fans who paid to see it – you don’t care? thats fine, but to me thats a bit of a dick move (and yes, people do complain about it at the end of the season when it happens)
• we lost – and i don’t like that

i think i’m definitely leaning more towards not liking it though.

The JV finished with a +6. Everyone else was -.

I like how you pick and choose non-HCA series. They only won at Phoenix on championship runs, but how many times have they beaten a higher seed and not gone on to win the title? I think it’s funny everyone is getting their panties in a bunch over one game. I find it even more hilarious that this was probably good for the Spurs. It showed us Malik Hairston should be in front of Udoka in the rotation. It showed other teams Oberto and even Vaughn are not finished. Remember we’re trying to trade them (possibly)? So go take some Midol and chill the fuck out.

At the end of every season, the teams NOT playing for playoff position, sit their starters. Sometimes for 2 or 3 games. This is no worse or different than those.

This has nothing on the abomination that went on last year when 5-7 teams were flat out tanking for 2 months. THAT is what should piss Stern off.

Sitting our starters one game is still better than the teams that go into “rebuilding mode” mid-season and bend their fans over for the duration.

My point, the NBA has bigger problems with coaches/organizations not giving their all for A game. See Thunder/Sonics, Grizzlies, last year’s Heat who threw in the towel and had their coach go on scouting trips instead of to actual fucking games.

Look, I watched the game last night. It was painful. We have good subs, but there’s a reason they are our subs. Would I wish that we had played our best and won? Yes, no doubt.

Here’s the deal. Pop’s job is not about entertaining people…on any level. Stern’s job is to make the NBA entertaining. Pop’s job is to win…rings. If he can do that by giving the subs a game against a good team on the road to almost take one, that’s fine with me. I would rather see this now that at the end of the year. That’s when I want to see good rhythm and solid play from my team.

Pop is probably smarter than most of us here. Is he a dick? I don’t know, but all I know is that he has been better than %100 of the other coaches out there in the last 10+ years so I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.

Tomasito said it first up above but I was definitely thinking it last night as well- How many of you were sick enough to imagine the same thing?

Five minutes left and we’re down by half a dozen, Pop calls timeout. He walks out further onto the floor than normal, silently gazes into the Denver crowd, sneers, looks over at the huddle and nods. At that moment, Timmy, TP and Manu strip off warmups to reveal uniforms; and head to the scorer’s table to check in. SPURS play lights out for the remaining 5, beat the thuggets by 12, and Pop still sends an amazing message to the league.

(So why didn’t Pop do this? If not to avoid being a dick, which we already know he’s apathetic to, could it be……that he…..had…..other reasons? Interestingly, there would be absolutely no psychological advantage with that scenario. In fact, I’d argue that it would set us further back. It’s painfully obvious to me that Pop didn’t simply do this to just rest starters or send a Stern message. Maybe to jack up Portland’s postseason though. We all know how deeply terrified of Portland we truly are, thank goodness Pop took a stand.)

Been thinking about this a lot. Here is my theory (with tongue somewhat planted in cheek):

We should have lost the GSW game. That was a crap call that got Manu to the line in the 4th. There were 5 worse fouls in the last 5 minutes of that game that did not get called and an out of position ref blew a late whistle on Manu’s drive. It wasn’t a charge like the GS announcers were claiming, but a good no-call, meaning we lose.

So, we’re one down in the karma column now after getting a game against GS we should not have gotten, plus it drags us into overtime and a very late (early?) arrival in Denver for a difficult game. Do you want the karma payback against Boston on Sunday? Or another more important game later in the season? No. Get it out of the way now. Sacrifice to the FSM and get it over with.

Pop is a genius.

We played without Fin too, so really his absence negates Tony’s absence. It was like a regular game without Tim and Manu.

One other idle thought: I’m not sure if Spurs fans are upset by what happened last night. But I guarantee Blazers fans are.

John Hollinger from ESPN.com

Do you hear anything from the fans when the Yankees rest 3 of their regular starters like 8 times a year? All those guys do is stand around in a field all day. How much rest do they really need?

I’ve been dwelling on this game a bit more today, desperately trying to avoid starting a project that sucks. So, here’s a another view on this game:

What did Pop learn last night?

I think that may be the whole point of what happened. Pop needed to learn a few things and there was no way to do that with TD, TP, and The Sickness on the floor. And you have those guys out, might as well take Fin out too. So, here’s what I think he may have learned. Jump in with your own thoughts as well:

- Malik Hairston might be a viable NBA 8th – 12th man. He did not shit himself out there and provided some good minutes as well as defense.

- The JV is still savvy, but has nothing else to offer. No, I don’t think he needed to learn this, per se. But it’s always nice to get your opinions reaffirmed.

- George Hill needs some more minutes if he is going to contribute in the playoffs. Preferably with a pure second unit (no Tim on the floor) that allows him to be aggressive and not feel like he has to defer.

- Mase can run the point for short stretches, but it’s not a good idea for long periods of time. 8 turnovers? Yuck. Oh, and the man cannot make a layup. Can. Not. With an open lane and no help defenders, the guys needs to pull up from 10 feet.

- KT’s recent solid play can be viable in extended minutes. He played a pretty good game last night and has been solid – shooting and rebounding – for a few weeks.

- But Oberto and KT should only play limited minutes together and only in emergencies, like foul trouble for Tim or the lack of any other viable options. They are moving toward the same spots on the floor all the time.

What else did Pop learn last night?

HORSE is back. Who’s happy? …Anyone?

You guys should check this post. Lots of interesting ideas to improve the ASW. My favorite is the suggestion to change Rooks Vs. Sophs to Rooks Vs. D-League All Stars. Can you say “Malik time”?

I didn’t think he did that bad last night. Sure he had a couple of TO’s and missed a couple open shots, but he did a decent job on Melo and played fairly good defense. No?

Hey, there’s something positive: we definitely aren’t boring today.

I wasted the entire day so far checking the repercussions of Pop’s decision. How can I not love this guy? He’s walking blog fodder.

Are you guys watching any games tonight? Portland @ Dallas looks yummy, but it starts late.

from Basketbawful concerning the game-
“Not surprisingly, George Karl was pissed. He called his team "selfish” and accused them of playing down to their competition. “We were fortunate. We still have a tendency in messing around with the game. It’s kind of come back in the last couple of weeks. We’ve still won most of the games but we should have attacked this game with a professional attitude and an intensity, and probably should have gotten the game over by the fourth quarter.” He also said: “I do realize in the NBA it is a trait of good teams winning playing bad. Going on a road trip after this performance scares the hell out of me.” It should."

:: cue evil maniacal laugh, circus music and puppet hand-motions ::

This whole thing that Pop pulled pretty much proves what I’ve been saying all season long: without Duncan, Manu and Tony, this team just isn’t all that good.

Sure, they had a shot at the win late in the fourth, but a shot isn’t good enough.

They completely wasted really high-level performances from Mason and Hairston last night. Those two deserved to be backed up with a good supporting cast, and without our whole team playing, it just didn’t happen.

I gotta tell you, if this continues throughout the rest of the season, we’re not going to be able to go far in the playoffs. In fact, we could miss the post-season all together.

Not so funny now, is it?