Larry Brown Sports

The only thing worse than having to interview Gregg Popovich on the sidelines heading into the fourth quarter is having to interview Gregg Popovich on the sidelines heading into the fourth quarter with his team trailing by 12. TNT’s David Aldridge drew that unlucky assignment on Monday night, but he was surprised by the reaction he got.

Aldridge went into the interview with only one question to ask Popovich, which was probably a good idea. He asked the veteran coach how he will keep his team from getting discouraged with the way Stephen Curry was shooting. Pop answered the question and took a jab at Aldridge for not asking a follow-up.

“No second question, huh?” he joked. “I’m hurt.”

Perhaps it was Pop’s positive attitude that helped the San Antonio Spurs claw their way to a 129-127 double-overtime victory against the Golden State Warriors in Game 1. Manu Ginobili may have had a little something to do with it as well. As we know from this awesome video of Popovich’s history of abusing Craig Sager, his interview with Aldridge on Monday night could have gone much worse. His wife probably won’t even be mad at him this time.

Video via @cjzero

Gregg Popovich is a very clever coach. He has won four NBA championships and keeps the San Antonio Spurs competitive regardless of personnel or injury. He is widely regarded as the top coach in the league, and his mental ability is a big reason why.

Take for instance what he did prior to the Spurs’ Western Conference semifinals playoff series against the Golden State Warriors.

Pop was extremely praiseworthy of the Warriors when speaking about them before the series began.

“They’re a very good team. They play good ‘D’. They rebound. They’ve got great pace, great skill players, good role players, and Mark has given them a philosophy they’ve all bought into, and it’s one heck of a squad. So they’re in the second round for a reason,” Popovich said of Golden State, via KENS 5.

He also recently said watching Stephen Curry shoot was like watching Michael Jordan play. Curry had a humorous response Sunday when presented with the comment. He asked if Pop was drunk at the time.

Even though Popovich’s comment was made two weeks ago, you have to wonder if this isn’t part of a bigger strategy to soften up the Warriors before the series.

Phil Jackson was notorious for priming officials by complaining about a player’s questionable technique ahead of a playoff game. Is this much different? The strategy of praising and over-praising opponents is very much in line with what Bill Belichick does in football.

According to the Patriots’ rules for dealing with the media, that’s one of Belichick’s biggest strategies. Not only do you not give the opposing team “bulletin board material” if you’re busy praising them, but you can also disarm a competitor by complimenting them. Isn’t that exactly why Michael Jordan would take opponents out to dinner before games? Pop knows exactly what he’s doing.

Stephen Jackson’s release by the San Antonio Spurs last week came as a shock to many. Nobody saw it coming, and many people were led to believe that Jackson was happy being part of the San Antonio organization. That clearly was not the case — at least not recently.

The day he was released, Jackson hinted at a possible conflict with coach Gregg Popovich.

“I would never say a player is better than me when I know their not. Not for no one,” Jackson wrote on Instagram.

He then tagged his note with a hashtag saying you and I know what’s really going on.

Jackson made it pretty obvious that he was dissatisfied with being behind players on the depth chart whom he thinks he’s better than. He elaborated on that thought in an interview with Sister 2 Sister Magazine.

“We had a disagreement,” Jackson said in reference to Coach Popovich. “He wanted me to agree to players being better than me, and I didn’t agree. I’ve been in the NBA a long time, so it’s just something I didn’t agree with and something I have no control over. He’s the coach. He controls who plays, and he controls the team, which I do respect. At the same time, I know what I can do and what I been doing my whole career, and I’m far from ready to hang it up. So, I can’t let one person tell me where I’m at 35-years-old. To me, it just didn’t make no sense.”

Jackson also says he expressed his unhappiness with his role on the team prior to the trade deadline and all-star break, and that he wishes they would have released him sooner so he could have joined another team.

I’m not 100 percent sure about whom Jackson is referring, but I’m guessing it’s Kawhi Leonard. Leonard was the team’s first-round pick in 2011 and has seen a big minutes boost this season. He’s also played well for San Antonio, and you cannot really disagree with the results; the Spurs secured the second seed in the Western Conference.

Who can really be surprised about Jackson having an issue with the team? He’s had problems everywhere he’s played, so it was only a matter of time before he had an issue with the Spurs. I’m honestly shocked he went this long without really having a big disagreement with the team.

H/T Pro Basketball Talk

Gregg Popovich stonewalling Craig Sager is a TNT tradition just like those great Photoshop pictures of Charles Barkley. Anytime the San Antonio Spurs play on TNT on Thursday nights, you know an uncomfortable interview between Pop and Sager is coming.

That certainly held true this week.

After the first quarter of the Spurs-Oklahoma City Thunder game, Sager attempted to ask the Spurs coach a few questions. Sager asked a legitimate question about how difficult it is for Pop to sub out Tim Duncan while he’s hot, and Pop gave a smartass retort.

“Well, I can’t play him 48 (minutes).”

Sager seemed to be caught off guard by the answer and was stumbling trying to figure out his next question. He tried to segue into something about the Spurs’ dangerous bench, and ended up looking silly for mentioning Manu Ginobili, who is out with a hamstring injury. No surprise, Popovich was quick to point out Sager’s error.

Pop’s history of abusing Sager during interviews was captured in video form last year. The coach’s wife even has asked him to cut it out, but he says he just can’t help it. As funny as it is to see him pick on Sager, we wish he would cut it out already and finally act professionally.

Video via @cjzero

Last weekend, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith reported that Gregg Popovich yelled at and rained f-bombs down on Dwight Howard during the All-Star game due to the center’s lack of focus in the game. Not surprisingly, Howard has denied that report, insisting on Friday night that it “just never happened.” Instead, he says the exchange had to do with confusion over whether it was supposed to be him or Blake Griffin involved with a play.

“Pop was diagramming a play for me, and then as he showed us what to do he kept saying, ‘Blake,’” Howard said according to the LA Times. “So Blake and I are confused, but he keeps saying Blake, so Blake takes off his jersey and goes into the game.

“Pop sees me and wants to know why I’m not in the game running the play, so I tell him he kept saying Blake so Blake went in. He wasn’t swearing at me.”

While it makes sense that Howard would deny that Pop swore at him even if it were true, we also have to consider the source. Stephen A. Smith has a flare for the dramatic, to say the least. It would be easy to believe that Howard was dogging it during the game, but it’s also not difficult to imagine Stephen A. exaggerating.

“It hurts me, but what can I do about it?” Howard asked. “I can’t fight ESPN.”

I’d be interested to see what Pop has to say. The important thing for the Lakers is that Howard has ben dominating the glass and putting up points over the past several games. Some people feel as though Popovich may have helped motivate Dwight, but it doesn’t really matter. If L.A. wants to make the playoffs, they’ll need Howard to continue his improved play.

Dwight Howard’s reputation for being a friendly guy who jokes around too much won’t be helped by this latest report.

According to ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, Howard’s lack of focus during the NBA All-Star Game on Sunday in Houston made him the target of some cussing from San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, who was leading the Western Conference squad.

Here’s how Smith reported the story during a visit with “Mike and Mike in the Morning” on ESPN Radio Wednesday morning.

“Coach Gregg Popovich dropped a few F-bombs in Dwight Howard’s direction during All-Star break,” said Smith. “During a timeout, Popovich drew up a play for Dwight Howard, according to my sources. When it was time to run the play, Howard wasn’t in the game, wasn’t paying attention, was on the bench in his warmups, chilling out socializing with folks.

“Popovich almost went ballistic and basically was cussing at him according to numerous people that I spoke to.”

Smith also reports that the friction between Dwight and Kobe Bryant was obvious, and that Kobe didn’t even look at much less talk to Howard throughout the weekend.

When it comes to a story like this, we would want to hear Howard’s side. Did he tell the coaches to limit his minutes because of his shoulder? Was it late in the game when he thought he was done for the day? And if there is ever a time in basketball where relaxing and socializing with teammates is acceptable, it should be the All-Star Game, so it’s hard to get too mad at him for this.

However, Howard was seen laughing and smiling after the Lakers’ most recent loss, which does put his focus into question. We know Howard works hard and that he wants to win, but between his indecision about his future and his friction with Kobe, his reputation is taking a major hit. LA is not the place for him, and New York probably won’t be any better.

You can hear Smith’s comments around the 5:30 mark in this link.

Stephen Jackson has problems on most teams he plays for in the NBA, but for some reason he fits in well in San Antonio.

Jackson had his breakthrough season with the Spurs back in ’02-’03, which helped him earn a contract with the Atlanta Hawks. Jackson jumped around to four other teams over the next eight seasons. He had a notable 30-game suspension for his role in the brawl in Indiana, a 7-game suspension for firing a gun outside a strip club, and he has had numerous team or league-issued suspensions for minor infractions since. He admitted he quit on the Bobcats, and he successfully forced his way out of Milwaukee last season.

That long list of missteps doesn’t seem to bother Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, who loves Jackson.

“I love his sense of humor and I love his competitiveness,” Popovich said Sunday, via the Star-Telegram. “He gives us a little bit of an edge.

“It’s great to have him, and the guys really appreciate him, especially Timmy (Duncan). He’s been one of Timmy’s favorite players through the years, so it’s great having him back with the squad.”

Are we talking about the same Stephen Jackson? The guy who seems to be a problem everywhere he goes? I guess the Spurs like the enforcer role he plays and the way he threatens opposing players. Or maybe Jackson made up with Duncan by finally letting the big man rap on his album.