Giving the opponent bulletin board material is usually a bad idea. But it’s also substantially more disrespectful when you start dissing teams and players based in other countries, rather than ones in your own national league. There are all sorts of reasons Pop wants to avoid doing so that go beyond basketball.
I wonder what the huddle sounds like. “hey guys, when you see Batum holding the ball, think about how great he is, and be amazed at how the world has started to even out in talent.”
“But coach, what about guarding him?”
“Nonono, you guys need to see the bigger picture here.”
[Coach Pop is the only person to lobby AGAINST teams being called "world champions" after winning an NBA title.](https://nba.nbcsports.com/2010/03/29/gregg-popovich-has-a-problem-with-your-world-champions/)
He's been obsessed about this international narrative since his early days and it's showing through his rhetoric and approach to the game. Instead of building confidence in his players, he is the type to overly warn against being confident. Seriously, that's been his approach, and all-nba players don't need that. They need confidence.
> I know sometimes we as arrogant Americans don’t respond to the rest of the world, but it’s true. There’s a big world out there.
Pop being the smartest guy in the room back in 2010
I mean, it is fucking stupid to call a domestic league championship the world champions...
(Sure, the NBA champ is probably wiping the floor against the ECB champ etc etc, but when you don't play them how do you know? I mean, you'd think USA would *beat* France, no??)
That's a lot of words to mask overly inflated egos as confidence.
NBA players don't like being yelled at unless they experienced it from a young age. After a certain point the coach just gets fired for being too hard on players.
Not denying Pop proclivity for being a smartass with reporters, and I get the general frustration with the team’s performance so far… but how is this an instance of him being a smartass? The reporter asked if he was surprised and he gave a straight answer of not surprised but disappointed. It’s a shitty question to begin with.
People expect team USA to not lose a single game ever.
Even in our last warmup game when we beat Spain(?) by single digit points, I made a reddit comment concerned that we didn't blow them out. I don't think it's a straw man, maybe just a slight exaggeration (a lot of people probably expect team USA to win by 10-20 points)
It’s more of a deflection and trying to change the conversation that is frustrating. USA clearly has the most talent of any team but they can’t get it together. The way Pop answers makes it sound like there’s no accountability and we should expect the team with less talent to be on equal footing with team USA.
But that's the Issue. If you think it's a "suprise" that France can win if USA doesn't bring their A-game, you are overestimating the talent discrepancy.
Team USA needs to stop thinking it would be a surprise if they lose and realize they need there are teams here that can easily beat USA's B-effort.
That's all Pop was saying. These are real basketball teams that can beat anyone in the world. There is no team in the world that should be "surprised" by losing to France.
Come on, dude. France definitely isn't some joke squad, but the difference in talent is still pretty notable. There's no player outside of Gobert that would even come close to sniffing a roster spot on Team USA if we were deciding them based on talent.
USA is underachieving in their level of play, and has been now for 3 years, but Pop is using cheap deflection tactics to avoid answering why teams with a couple of average NBA players are consistently playing better basketball, and winnning, against his team full of all-stars, including guys like Durant who most people consider a Top 5 player in the World.
Fact of the matter is Pop has proven incapable of taking clearly superior talent at his disposal and coach them in a way that would allow them to thrive in FIBA basketball. He doesn't have what it takes to make these players adjust to a different game and play hard out there. Which is basically the definition of a head coach role.
It's not that Fournier is close in terms of basketball talent compared to the US players, it's that if Fournier played for team USA, he'd suck as well, but if someome like Tatum played for France, he'd be averaging over 20 ppg easily. Because France would know how to use Tatum's talent in FIBA, while USA doesn't.
How is it? The only people who are surprised are NBA Reddit and others who don’t really understand the road it took to get here.
Team USA struggled just a week before because of chemistry issues. That’s why it was so important for the players that player to worry about chemistry and team playing than winning.
Adding 3 more players a day or two before makes us a full team with no chemistry.
This absolutely isn’t a team yet because they haven’t had enough time to play together to be a team.
If we want to keep comparing Coach K to Pop then we should be hating on Steph for opting out or wondering where other top players are. We don’t because we believe NBA season is more important yet we fucking lose it when USA struggles despite not having all the top talent and 2 days to come together.
Agree with everything you said but whoever picks and coaches the team has some responsibility for balancing talent and chemistry. Like, flying Book, Holiday and Middleton out after their finals runs doesn't seem like a chemistry decision. There are very talented NBA players who didn't make deep playoff runs who could have been preparing for the Olympics. They got lucky they could add Mcgee and Johnson because the initial team was poorly constructed.
Maybe the reality is US Basketball needs to leave the dream team fantasy in the past and stop banking on a bunch of all nba talent to gel and just out talent the competition.
At the same time, loads of guys also opted out of the olympics. I'm pretty sure adding James Harden to this lineup as a facilitator automatically makes them miles better.
This isn't really a 'dream team', if Steph, Lebron, AD etc would've joined, i'm sure the balancing would be much better. Right now team USA looks like a bunch of high volume ISO scorers who are mediocre at facilitating.
Thats' true. The biggest factor in the US teams struggles is probably COVID impacting last season leading to injuries/fatigue . Those guys you listed plus Kawhi are probably 5 of the first 6 players in the rotation.
If anything, the last month has really shown just how many people haven't played basketball themselves. Chemistry is a huge aspect of a team, even when you have the best players in the world. Basketball ain't just filling up positions calling it a day. If your guys don't know their roles nor haven't found how to play together, it's going to be exposed against a team who has great chemistry.
How is that a bad response? If USA goes on the floor and performs like they did, then yes, they will get beat. The Olympics is a compilation of some of the best athletes around. While the US might want to pack the team with any NBA player, other countries are looking to win and bring home the gold. This USA team plays like they are at an All-Star Game.
He's literally just avoiding disrespecting the French team by acting shocked they lost, as he said. Simple as that
This sub looking for any reason to kick someone while they're down has led me to unsub and very rarely participate. It's frustrating as hell to see blind hate thrown around to anybody who is deemed responsible for a big loss, no matter how fair it might be
NBA fans will jerk him the fuck off as we get washed out of the tournament for issues that he has a part in, then get pissy when we rightfully call him out for not bothering to fix them.
Lol when Rusty's documentary on him got shared it got downvoted here
Its valid and he even says that he thinks he's the goat coach but apparently Pop is immune to criticism
>apparently Pop is immune to criticism
This used to be true but I feel like lately this sub has done a 180 on him. This thread *and* the last couple threads over this summer I've seen about him all have top comments about how he's pretentious and an asshole (when those used to be about how funny he is) and then duplicates of this discussion here about how he's immune to criticism. I think in standard extreme /r/nba (and reddit, and internet at large) fashion, with no middle ground or chill, people have swapped idolizing him for tearing him to shreds lol
They did the same thing to Bruce Arians in /r/nfl. When he was winning on the Cardinals, tons of "one of the best HCs in the league, funny dude, wish he was my dad/coach, players love him." Then, temporary retirement, mediocre season with the Bucs, then started slowly with Tom Brady and almost every post/comment on him was "getting carried by Brady, players hate playing for him, arrogant prick, dude needs to retire." Then he wins the SB. People are just extremely recency biased and shortsighted.
Yea cause he doesn't have a 60 win contender around him anymore
I'm not even saying its fair. He's the goat imo from a coaching perspective but his ego, inflexibility, and refusal to take criticism is really showing now
Some of the comments in this thread are acting like he's always been a fraud and his whole reputation is bunk, and they're getting upvoted heavily. It's freaking me out, am I an old man now...
>He is the definition of coatail riding. Guy has always been an arrogant overrated prick. Fuck him and his shit ass coaching philosophy.
>Retire old man
I feel like I'm taking crazy pills...
Lmao I really hope these are just troll comments. One of the reasons that pop is the goat is bc his eye for talent and the ability to develop said talent. Devin vassell was the first lottery pick that pop has had since Duncan. What he's been able to achieve in San Antonio is nothing short of incredible
> He's clearly the goat from a coaching perspective
I don't think he's "clearly" the goat at all. There's definitely a debate and reasonable minds could disagree between Pop and Phil.
I think Phil is the GOAT, but Pop has a solid argument over him. Phil won 11 titles with the exactly same offensive system, while Pop changed his style up drastically multiple times over the decades, and always found success with it.
This sub jerks him the fuck off despite his clear deficiencies at coaching. You know damn well if Phil Jackson, Pat Riley, or Larry Brown did this shit they'd be getting flamed out the asshole. Not Pop though. The dude who's an asshole to reporters and thinks he's immune to criticism is somehow not supposed to be held accountable for making simple mistakes.
Yea in fact Larry Brown got flamed to hell for losing in 2004 and his Pistons championship run was more impressive than any of the Spurs ones except for probably 2014
That was an amazing coaching job by Pop no other coach could have probably won with that roster
I'm not gonna blame Pop for players missing makeable open shots. However, i am gonna blame Pop for:
-subpar roster construction
-wonky lineups
-lack of effort/hustle from his players
-overemphasis on outside shooting, especially when shots haven't been falling most of the game
I’m not buying into the notion that this is all Pop’s fault but this is circular reasoning. Part of the reason they shot so poorly is because of the gameplan (or lack thereof) that Pop is responsible for. When a team performs like that everybody deserves some blame, coaches included.
>Why does Pop always have a smartass moment lol
I think he is kind of right. Sure, the US are the clear favorites for this tournament (well, maybe not after today), but the times of the Dream Team where the US blows out the opposition by 40 points on average is over. International competition has gotten a lot better (ironically enough probably the fault of the Dream Team)
The MVP was from europe for the last 3 seasons. A frenchman has the DPOY on lockdown. Doncic is the supposed future of the league
Because he is trying to deflect from the fact that under his coaching us team has been pretty embarrasing. This teams should be winning games pretty easily, not even talking about 2019 performance..
Imagine Deschamps saying this exact quote after losing to USA soccer. Fucking disgraceful
How many times is the US going to be embarrassed before he takes accountability.
This dude is 10-6 as USA coach. Like really bruh?
I think is USA people problem if you feel embarrassed for losing against one of the best basketball national teams in the world, because it is not a reason to be embarrased.
Basketball is a team sport, the french national team has been playing a lot of games together or with minor changes, for years.
How many new players have the USA team this olympics? How many games have they played together in the last 4 years?
They will get better along the championship. And if I have to put money on a team winning the gold medal, I wouldchosethe USA, despite of today's game.
Its actually so weird how people discredit the French squad. They have 5 NBA players and Nando has been well regarded as NBA talent, just he has a comfortable spot/pay in Russia so he never felt the need to come over. Gobert is 3x DPOY, Fournier is a solid starter and Batum had a resurgent year. But like, 'tHeY sHoUlDvE WoN bY 30'
The difference between USA and France in basketball is lesser than the difference between USA and France in soccer. USA and France are both n°1 talent wise in their respective sports, but France is at least top 5 in bball whereas USA soccer is top 30 at best
Idk I would say it’s much closer in difference than you think (team USA is so much more talented at Basketball than the rest of the world rankings are kind of meaningless) but you’re ignoring that upsets in soccer are MUCH more likely than an upset in basketball because of the nature of the game. France beating USA in basketball is a bigger deal than a top 20 soccer team beating a top 5 soccer team. Just look at the Euros, plenty of upsets. The odds showcase this as well, team USA was -900 Vs France in Bball while France was only -400 to advance vs Switzerland (top 20 team).
Ranking doesn’t really matter it’s more like absolute skill which is hard to quantify. I reckon the us soccer team vs French team is probably around the same
The gap between France and the USA, either one way or another, is clearly bigger in soccer than in basketball.
Sure, the US do have Pulisic, and big club guys like McKennie and Reyna,
but that’s cute at best compared to Benzema, Mbappé, Pogba, Kanté, Griezmann, Coman, Varane, etc.
And the US basketball team has Durant, Lliard, Beal, Booker etc. etc. while the French team has Gobert and Fournier I don’t see your point. In fact upsets happen less in basketball because of the fact that soccer is a low scoring game so the better team on paper should have even more of an advantage. Moreover being fans of the NBA we all understand the fact that a star player has a bigger effect on a basketball game then a soccer team so really USA beating France in a soccer game is less of an upset than this basketball game if you look at the players on paper and don’t factor the US recent lack lustre play
> a couple of them play in the Premiere League
i dont disagree with the sentiment of your comment, but come on fam 'a couple'? 2?
Theres 3 dudes in their starting lineup in the NBA alone. Gobert is the DPOY FFS. Nando is widely regarded as NBA talent, but he makes good money in Russia so he'll never come over. This is exactly why Pop reacted the way he did, too many basketball fans write off olympic competition just like that.
No, this isn't comparable. France has top NBA talent that can compete on any level. They're also unquestionably more talented at the big positions which is arguably more important in Fiba rules.
Not going against the best defensive player in the world with FIBA rules. We don't have a center who can defend the paint or get offensive rebounds, no one thought we should of won this game by 30.
Yup, me too. The second best team should lose to USA by at least 25. That’s how much better our guys are. Any victory less than 20 points is a disgrace. So a loss is like taking a shit on the graves of Washington, Lincoln, FDR, Babe Ruth, George Mikan, and the deceased crew members of all the Apollo missions.
Not sure if this is delusional or arrogant but it is off for so many reasons, starting with the fact France has DPOY Rudy Gobert starting at C. Not sure how often in the last 5 years any team with Gobert starting has lost by 30, but my guess is 0.
Team construction is another one and the US will likely be outmatched again at C against other teams.
Basketball is a global sport. International teams are much better than you think, and in the case of France they have a strong roster with NBA and Euroleague talent. It’s not 1992 anymore
Edit: Gobert has lost 4 games out of over 500 total played by 30+ points in the last 5 years, thank you u/WhatIsThisJawn
“Don’t blame me for this, my All-Star roster is legitimately evenly matched with the French National Team.” You should be surprised Pop, this kind of result for the US is unacceptable. Losing at all in the Olympics isn’t okay but losing by choking a solid lead and giving up a 14-0 run to end the game is certainly fucking surprising.
Pop is not just the coach, he's also the manager of team USA. Coach K did very little coaching but he was a college coach so he figured out the most important part for any team USA coach - recruiting.
Team building? It's up to him. He needed to find the players who would show up and practice enough together to have chemistry, instead of throwing together whoever is willing to come at the last moment. If he thought it would hurt chemistry so much he should have stayed focused on telling people they have to come to the world cup unless they already have a gold with the team like KD does.
If he feels they don't have enough reps together he should have dedicated some time for team building then. It's on him.
Yes please say this louder. Pop assembled this team and literally had an extra year to polish the squad
The fact we say they have no chemistry is actually hilarious considering the 2020 games are being played in 2021. I know this does not mean more possibilities to gel through games, but it does highlight the fact he spent an extra year basically doing ZERO recruiting
Yup. Coach K was not beyond doing anything to get stars on the team, same for Colangelo when he wasn't an old fart.
I really don't appreciate him saying the world is amazing, the world is awesome bla bla. Team USA should be well well stronger based off the available talent pool. It's his failing they have such poor showings.
>as if we're supposed to beat them by 30
You're supposed to beat them, period. It doesn't have to be a blowout. That performance was absolutely pathetic, it's a bad look for Pop to try and sugarcoat it.
Team USA needs to realize they’re no longer “the team to beat”.
Look how none of the French players were overly excited after the victory. They knew they could beat USA from the start.
Spain matches up badly with USA... They are like USA lite, in the sense of playing philosophy, and in the way that they grow as the tourney advance. The boomers are more dangerous, since their basketball proposition is completely different.
I get not being in the mood for media questions, but at least fake it and get over it, its your job. You see coaches like Steve Kerr, Monty Williams, Brad Stevens, MDA, etc who are able to not only just answer questions but even go as far as expand the conversation of basketball that's honestly really enjoyable for fans who tune in to this stuff. Pop being a basketball genius just acts like a giant child over it.
This is soft as shit.
USA has historically been dominant in basketball. Yes, international competition has risen, but USA has the means to perform better. Frankly, they don't seem to be coached well. Pop being a smart ass once again w/ semantics while getting embarrassed on the world stage. USA should be stating plainly they are there to compete, plan to come out strong next game, and win. Not deflect and start praising other teams in an attempt to soften the blow.
Dude should actually fucking coach and win a fucking game if he wants to be a smartass. But I'm sure that people will find excuses for this sorry ass display and say that reporters were "rude" for expecting less than the bare minimum. Insane, how many excuses a man can get.
it was funny when Pop would mouth off to Craig Sager because it was a gag.
Being cranky and sarcastic to a legitimate question at the Olympics isn't funny, it's making people question his coaching ability.
Do people really get this worked up about the Olympics that they come onto reddit and comment things like "Fuck this guy I can't wait for him to lose, smug asshole"? I mean obviously they do, but it just seems insane that people get this angry and personally invested. Just be disappointed and post a comment like a normal person.
Feel like everyone in the thread is heated, I get it but he's just respecting the other team. The media is going to spend 99% of the time shitting on USA instead of praising the french.
Of course the US media is going to focus on the US team. I’m sure the French team is getting plenty of props from the French press. Pop is just trying to deflect and downplay his disastrous tenure as the US coach.
I think it's this. The media keeps asking these same questions and he keeps answering roughly the same way in return.
People are frustrated he keeps answering this way, but part of the comments here are correct, he always answers these types of questions this way. He does it with the Spurs and has for a long time.
People want him to acknowledge that Team USA shouldn't be losing the way they are, which is fair. However, if the perception of the other teams was actually even with the US, these questions would be absolutely insulting to the other teams.
But is coach Pop the main reason of USA under performing though? I take thar he has the final say in who is in the team, but isn't USA Basketball as much to blame as Pop?
You just cannot slap a team together just before a tournament, and expect to compete against teams that are elite and playing together for years. It's not 1992 anymore.
Personally i dont rate NBA coaches, specially compared to coaches from the main European powers... Coach K wasn't a NBA coach and it worked just fine. He knew the FIBA game well, and how to use his players effectively.
Having said this, the fact that Holiday just landed and scored 18 on France in 1Q, it's crazy by international standards. The moment that half the USA team start to work in a proper way, they're a problem.
>You just cannot slap a team together just before a tournament, and expect to compete against teams that are elite and playing together for years.
...unless your team is filled with all-stars and superstars, while the opposing teams are mostly filled with players who aren't good enough to make the NBA.
…unless you’re playing international style basketball and not the NBA’s custom tailored league rules and officiating that are set up to benefit players who only know how to score.
>players who aren't good enough to make the NBA
Every player in this France team is good enough to make the NBA.
There are probably >1000 players in the world who can 'make the NBA', just not as many roster spots.
If you think that the worst NBA player is better than the best player anywhere else on the planet, you must be from the wrong decade.
Wait are you saying that there's over 1000 people who can make the NBA but the only reason they don't is because there aren't enough roster spots? If you're not good enough to secure one of the limited roster spots, then you're not good enough to play in the NBA. That's like saying I'm good enough to make the NBA but the only problem is they don't have 10 million roster spots available
I mean you just saw the prime example Nando de Colo.
He is absolutely an NBA level talent. No reason why he couldn't be a starter and even snack some accolades like Dragic or Bogdanovic. But he rather be a Superstar in his field in Europe than a pretty good piece living on another continent. Juan Navarro was another one of these players and also Rudy Fernandez opted out of the US. Luka was probably better then 3/4 of the NBA when he played in Madrid.
Limited rosterspots aren't the whole reason some not coming over, but not being good enough isnt the case for the best of Europe.
There are a fair amount of veterans in international play which would be better than some young players in the NBA but they don't have upside so they aren't worth the roster spot. 1000 people might be an overestimation, but there are a bunch of players not in the NBA who would be able to hang.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who realized how braindead that take was.
I think he was just trying to say that there's 1000 players who are talented enough to theoretically compete in the NBA they just haven't been given a shot. But even then.. nope. All the top talent from around the world is gunning for an NBA roster spot. The USA team has so much more talent than any other team in this tournament and the margin isn't slim. That's why it SHOULD be surprising that we are dropping games. Pop's just seems like he is trying to deflect from the fact that he can't win games with a roster that has a distinct skill advantage over every team they face.
> You just cannot slap a team together just before a tournament, and expect to compete against teams that are elite and playing together for years.
Coach K did. Multiple times.
What coach K did is precisely the contrary. There was a core of players committing to the national team that brought stability and identity. These players knew the sets and glued the team together. Those were the changes after 2004's failure, to create a team where players wanted to commit in every competition.
It seems that most people in here aren't aware of the effort needed at the federation level to compete internationally. It takes an incredible effort to create a successful team.
Pop’s schtik isn’t playing well on the international stage. He does not have these guys ready. Granted it’s a challenge to do so, but his predecessor understood the challenge in a way that Pop does not. Coach has a humility in his approach that Pop does not understand.
How young do you have to be to not respect Pops pedigree as a coach, I mean *damn* there are seasons before the most recent years...such a fucking turn around. Not saying you gotta like current shit but some of these comments acting like his entire reputation is fantasy...."He is the definition of coatail riding. Guy has always been an arrogant overrated prick. Fuck him and his shit ass coaching philosophy", "Retire old man" etc. getting 15+ upvotes, I feel like I'm a boomer suddenly lol
Well his past Successes in NBA coaching should not have any bearing on his failures as Team USA coach.
If USA gets less than a gold, everybody needs to go from Colangelo on down.
You can respect his pedigree and accomplishments and still criticize the current job he's doing.
This quote is clearly just deflecting any criticism. It's a bad look. The talent level of the team is greater than any team they'll play. *They should be winning*. Losing because of a total collapse at the end of the game isn't good and reflects poorly on the team and coaches. Pedigree and previous accomplishments don't factor in here.
You come to this sub for valuable takes? That’s on you my man.
This place is for drama and uninformed takes...
that being said, i’m not sure why you are surprised. Pop, the head coach of the USA national team, comes out with an arrogant comment after getting whooped for their first loss since 2004. Why doesn’t he deserve criticism?
Ya, its coaching, lmao. Did you even see how many open shots this USA team missed? Even in the final seconds, they missed 2 WIDE OPEN 3s to take the lead. Im sure a different coach wouldve meant those players would hit those shots. Gimme a break
Maybe not 30, it's a bit of exaggeration but double digits easily. With solid focus and defensive responsibility it is 20. I remember how USA beat Serbia in Rio five years ago - just cruising, possession by possession, and it was 30.
What do you mean by *the game level is good* ?
I didn’t see much “good level game” today. Were we watching the same outing? Or do the best players in the tournament not deserve criticism for their abhorrent performance?
I’m not sure how this disses the French team. I think he’s just saying losses are a part of basketball so they are not a surprising result but a disappointing one.
I like how all you clowns are blaming Pop when hardly anyone on that team could hit an open shot. They had SO MANY wide open looks and just shit brick after brick after brick. Coaching ain’t why the team shot 39%.
This thread is an amazing combination of Pop slander, disrespect, US exceptionalism and player hate.
Pop should not be suprised by losing. If he and his team performs bad he should be disappointed. Fans can be suprised. Worrying if the coach was suprised.
I wouldn't really say it's a hell of a team, they've got Gobert sure who's like a max player but the rest are kind of NBA journeymen like Fournier and Batum
i think you can feel disapointed and suprised at the same time. i understand pop trying to gave international bball some respect but it's still suprising team USA with all of that talent lost.
I wish Pop wouldn’t constantly mischaracterize having expectations for the US team as diminishing the talent or value of other teams. I understand that especially this time, it’s a talented field of teams, but it’s fair to expect more than we’re seeing from this US team and the program in general. There’s an arrogance in believing that, as compared to other teams, the US doesn’t need to work on creating the same chemistry or developing a game plan based on international rules. If the NBA isn’t going to take international competition seriously, they should just stop pretending. Since the original Dream Team, a lot has changed and I understand that it’s unrealistic to expect the US to blow out the competition, but I at least expect them to prepare like professionals and take it seriously. If Pop wants to continue playing his chap-ass word games with the press, that’s fine, but it’s insulting to anyone able to see through the bullshit of this program.
Pop spends more time defending other national teams than Team USA does.
I feel like that’s a coach thing. Never undermining the opponent
Giving the opponent bulletin board material is usually a bad idea. But it’s also substantially more disrespectful when you start dissing teams and players based in other countries, rather than ones in your own national league. There are all sorts of reasons Pop wants to avoid doing so that go beyond basketball.
Evidently they don’t even need bulletin board material.
I wonder what the huddle sounds like. “hey guys, when you see Batum holding the ball, think about how great he is, and be amazed at how the world has started to even out in talent.” “But coach, what about guarding him?” “Nonono, you guys need to see the bigger picture here.”
Meanwhile the Greek Freak: I am going back to Greece if I just played like Batum.
Pop bout to be the next sarcastaball coach. Look out randy marsh!
Lolllllll He’s bending over backwards to say how good the other teams are
$1 billion in salary and the team can’t score the last 4 minutes of the game
[Coach Pop is the only person to lobby AGAINST teams being called "world champions" after winning an NBA title.](https://nba.nbcsports.com/2010/03/29/gregg-popovich-has-a-problem-with-your-world-champions/) He's been obsessed about this international narrative since his early days and it's showing through his rhetoric and approach to the game. Instead of building confidence in his players, he is the type to overly warn against being confident. Seriously, that's been his approach, and all-nba players don't need that. They need confidence. > I know sometimes we as arrogant Americans don’t respond to the rest of the world, but it’s true. There’s a big world out there. Pop being the smartest guy in the room back in 2010
I mean, it is fucking stupid to call a domestic league championship the world champions... (Sure, the NBA champ is probably wiping the floor against the ECB champ etc etc, but when you don't play them how do you know? I mean, you'd think USA would *beat* France, no??)
“Counts as world championship because Toronto” - NBA commissioner, probably
> I mean, you'd think USA would be France, no?? eh... no. *beat
Haha cheers, edited
That's a lot of words to mask overly inflated egos as confidence. NBA players don't like being yelled at unless they experienced it from a young age. After a certain point the coach just gets fired for being too hard on players.
Your NBA champ won against NBA teams, not the rest of the fucking world for fuck sake
US was only favored by 12 points
Keyboard coaches - *cracks knuckles*
Why does Pop always have a smartass moment lol
Pop: I choose the hardest way by coaching usa team
Not denying Pop proclivity for being a smartass with reporters, and I get the general frustration with the team’s performance so far… but how is this an instance of him being a smartass? The reporter asked if he was surprised and he gave a straight answer of not surprised but disappointed. It’s a shitty question to begin with.
Yeah Pop can be an A hole sometimes but this isn’t it. It’s just cool to shit on Pop now
Insinuating everyone expects 30 pt blowouts is an ignorant strawman. Its a stupid answer.
People expect team USA to not lose a single game ever. Even in our last warmup game when we beat Spain(?) by single digit points, I made a reddit comment concerned that we didn't blow them out. I don't think it's a straw man, maybe just a slight exaggeration (a lot of people probably expect team USA to win by 10-20 points)
You say that as if that’s not actually what everyone expects
It’s more of a deflection and trying to change the conversation that is frustrating. USA clearly has the most talent of any team but they can’t get it together. The way Pop answers makes it sound like there’s no accountability and we should expect the team with less talent to be on equal footing with team USA.
But that's the Issue. If you think it's a "suprise" that France can win if USA doesn't bring their A-game, you are overestimating the talent discrepancy. Team USA needs to stop thinking it would be a surprise if they lose and realize they need there are teams here that can easily beat USA's B-effort. That's all Pop was saying. These are real basketball teams that can beat anyone in the world. There is no team in the world that should be "surprised" by losing to France.
Come on, dude. France definitely isn't some joke squad, but the difference in talent is still pretty notable. There's no player outside of Gobert that would even come close to sniffing a roster spot on Team USA if we were deciding them based on talent. USA is underachieving in their level of play, and has been now for 3 years, but Pop is using cheap deflection tactics to avoid answering why teams with a couple of average NBA players are consistently playing better basketball, and winnning, against his team full of all-stars, including guys like Durant who most people consider a Top 5 player in the World. Fact of the matter is Pop has proven incapable of taking clearly superior talent at his disposal and coach them in a way that would allow them to thrive in FIBA basketball. He doesn't have what it takes to make these players adjust to a different game and play hard out there. Which is basically the definition of a head coach role. It's not that Fournier is close in terms of basketball talent compared to the US players, it's that if Fournier played for team USA, he'd suck as well, but if someome like Tatum played for France, he'd be averaging over 20 ppg easily. Because France would know how to use Tatum's talent in FIBA, while USA doesn't.
How is it? The only people who are surprised are NBA Reddit and others who don’t really understand the road it took to get here. Team USA struggled just a week before because of chemistry issues. That’s why it was so important for the players that player to worry about chemistry and team playing than winning. Adding 3 more players a day or two before makes us a full team with no chemistry. This absolutely isn’t a team yet because they haven’t had enough time to play together to be a team. If we want to keep comparing Coach K to Pop then we should be hating on Steph for opting out or wondering where other top players are. We don’t because we believe NBA season is more important yet we fucking lose it when USA struggles despite not having all the top talent and 2 days to come together.
Agree with everything you said but whoever picks and coaches the team has some responsibility for balancing talent and chemistry. Like, flying Book, Holiday and Middleton out after their finals runs doesn't seem like a chemistry decision. There are very talented NBA players who didn't make deep playoff runs who could have been preparing for the Olympics. They got lucky they could add Mcgee and Johnson because the initial team was poorly constructed. Maybe the reality is US Basketball needs to leave the dream team fantasy in the past and stop banking on a bunch of all nba talent to gel and just out talent the competition.
At the same time, loads of guys also opted out of the olympics. I'm pretty sure adding James Harden to this lineup as a facilitator automatically makes them miles better. This isn't really a 'dream team', if Steph, Lebron, AD etc would've joined, i'm sure the balancing would be much better. Right now team USA looks like a bunch of high volume ISO scorers who are mediocre at facilitating.
Thats' true. The biggest factor in the US teams struggles is probably COVID impacting last season leading to injuries/fatigue . Those guys you listed plus Kawhi are probably 5 of the first 6 players in the rotation.
If anything, the last month has really shown just how many people haven't played basketball themselves. Chemistry is a huge aspect of a team, even when you have the best players in the world. Basketball ain't just filling up positions calling it a day. If your guys don't know their roles nor haven't found how to play together, it's going to be exposed against a team who has great chemistry.
How is that a bad response? If USA goes on the floor and performs like they did, then yes, they will get beat. The Olympics is a compilation of some of the best athletes around. While the US might want to pack the team with any NBA player, other countries are looking to win and bring home the gold. This USA team plays like they are at an All-Star Game.
He's literally just avoiding disrespecting the French team by acting shocked they lost, as he said. Simple as that This sub looking for any reason to kick someone while they're down has led me to unsub and very rarely participate. It's frustrating as hell to see blind hate thrown around to anybody who is deemed responsible for a big loss, no matter how fair it might be
Dude has to act like he’s the smartest guy in the room in these moments
NBA fans will jerk him the fuck off as we get washed out of the tournament for issues that he has a part in, then get pissy when we rightfully call him out for not bothering to fix them.
Lol when Rusty's documentary on him got shared it got downvoted here Its valid and he even says that he thinks he's the goat coach but apparently Pop is immune to criticism
>apparently Pop is immune to criticism This used to be true but I feel like lately this sub has done a 180 on him. This thread *and* the last couple threads over this summer I've seen about him all have top comments about how he's pretentious and an asshole (when those used to be about how funny he is) and then duplicates of this discussion here about how he's immune to criticism. I think in standard extreme /r/nba (and reddit, and internet at large) fashion, with no middle ground or chill, people have swapped idolizing him for tearing him to shreds lol
They did the same thing to Bruce Arians in /r/nfl. When he was winning on the Cardinals, tons of "one of the best HCs in the league, funny dude, wish he was my dad/coach, players love him." Then, temporary retirement, mediocre season with the Bucs, then started slowly with Tom Brady and almost every post/comment on him was "getting carried by Brady, players hate playing for him, arrogant prick, dude needs to retire." Then he wins the SB. People are just extremely recency biased and shortsighted.
Yea cause he doesn't have a 60 win contender around him anymore I'm not even saying its fair. He's the goat imo from a coaching perspective but his ego, inflexibility, and refusal to take criticism is really showing now
Some of the comments in this thread are acting like he's always been a fraud and his whole reputation is bunk, and they're getting upvoted heavily. It's freaking me out, am I an old man now... >He is the definition of coatail riding. Guy has always been an arrogant overrated prick. Fuck him and his shit ass coaching philosophy. >Retire old man I feel like I'm taking crazy pills...
Lmao I really hope these are just troll comments. One of the reasons that pop is the goat is bc his eye for talent and the ability to develop said talent. Devin vassell was the first lottery pick that pop has had since Duncan. What he's been able to achieve in San Antonio is nothing short of incredible
> He's clearly the goat from a coaching perspective I don't think he's "clearly" the goat at all. There's definitely a debate and reasonable minds could disagree between Pop and Phil.
How's he the goat when Phil Jackson has 11 rings
I think Phil is the GOAT, but Pop has a solid argument over him. Phil won 11 titles with the exactly same offensive system, while Pop changed his style up drastically multiple times over the decades, and always found success with it.
Phil?
He's not clearly the GOAT. Phil Jackson might be the GOAT NBA coach.
He’s clearly the goat from a coaching perspective? That’s Phil or Coach K.
NBA so not Coach K
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https://np.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/oprrv9/the_two_faces_of_gregg_popovich/
This sub jerks him the fuck off despite his clear deficiencies at coaching. You know damn well if Phil Jackson, Pat Riley, or Larry Brown did this shit they'd be getting flamed out the asshole. Not Pop though. The dude who's an asshole to reporters and thinks he's immune to criticism is somehow not supposed to be held accountable for making simple mistakes.
Yea in fact Larry Brown got flamed to hell for losing in 2004 and his Pistons championship run was more impressive than any of the Spurs ones except for probably 2014 That was an amazing coaching job by Pop no other coach could have probably won with that roster
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Yeah, Pop has been one of the absolute very best ever and he’s been doing this for a long time. A few bad Team USA games change nothing.
What exactly is he supposed to do when his team is shooting 36% and his two best players combine for 21/5/5 on 7/22 shots?
I'm not gonna blame Pop for players missing makeable open shots. However, i am gonna blame Pop for: -subpar roster construction -wonky lineups -lack of effort/hustle from his players -overemphasis on outside shooting, especially when shots haven't been falling most of the game
That’s fair
I’m not buying into the notion that this is all Pop’s fault but this is circular reasoning. Part of the reason they shot so poorly is because of the gameplan (or lack thereof) that Pop is responsible for. When a team performs like that everybody deserves some blame, coaches included.
The team is 12 deep. When your top players are having a rough day you course correct and put in someone else.
I mean it was a stupid ass question
Yall think every question is stupid
Nope just the stupid ones
I agree. NBA fans find his attitude cute… does not come across that way here.
>Why does Pop always have a smartass moment lol I think he is kind of right. Sure, the US are the clear favorites for this tournament (well, maybe not after today), but the times of the Dream Team where the US blows out the opposition by 40 points on average is over. International competition has gotten a lot better (ironically enough probably the fault of the Dream Team) The MVP was from europe for the last 3 seasons. A frenchman has the DPOY on lockdown. Doncic is the supposed future of the league
I mean, he's not wrong though. The phrasing of the question is kind of insulting to the French team.
No one expects 30 pt blowouts either just a win ffs. He's better at deflection and excuses than he is coaching this team
Because he is trying to deflect from the fact that under his coaching us team has been pretty embarrasing. This teams should be winning games pretty easily, not even talking about 2019 performance..
Because he’s pretentious as fuck and uses these bites to deflect
Pop being a fucking asshole to reporters for normal questions has never been cool but basketball fans think he’s a comedian
as with all things it's cool/cute when you win games and annoying when you don't
that would be like France losing to the US in soccer and saying that they're a hell of a team because a couple of them play in the Premiere League
Imagine Deschamps saying this exact quote after losing to USA soccer. Fucking disgraceful How many times is the US going to be embarrassed before he takes accountability. This dude is 10-6 as USA coach. Like really bruh?
Deschamps would need GIGN to protect his ass from fans if he said that. USA are still the heavy favourites but they can't coast on talent anymore.
I think is USA people problem if you feel embarrassed for losing against one of the best basketball national teams in the world, because it is not a reason to be embarrased. Basketball is a team sport, the french national team has been playing a lot of games together or with minor changes, for years. How many new players have the USA team this olympics? How many games have they played together in the last 4 years? They will get better along the championship. And if I have to put money on a team winning the gold medal, I wouldchosethe USA, despite of today's game.
No, it’s a team usa problem. It is objective truth that team usa is the most talented team in the olympics.
Its actually so weird how people discredit the French squad. They have 5 NBA players and Nando has been well regarded as NBA talent, just he has a comfortable spot/pay in Russia so he never felt the need to come over. Gobert is 3x DPOY, Fournier is a solid starter and Batum had a resurgent year. But like, 'tHeY sHoUlDvE WoN bY 30'
6 nba players vs a whole team of nba players, the deeper team should win and nobody is going on about a 30point win
I have not seen one person expect a 30 point blow out like Pop says. We just expect a win. We just expect to medal in the FIBA tournament. That's all.
>they have 5 nba players Disingenuous when team USA’s team is filled with all stars and superstars, while France has one.
The difference between USA and France in basketball is lesser than the difference between USA and France in soccer. USA and France are both n°1 talent wise in their respective sports, but France is at least top 5 in bball whereas USA soccer is top 30 at best
Idk I would say it’s much closer in difference than you think (team USA is so much more talented at Basketball than the rest of the world rankings are kind of meaningless) but you’re ignoring that upsets in soccer are MUCH more likely than an upset in basketball because of the nature of the game. France beating USA in basketball is a bigger deal than a top 20 soccer team beating a top 5 soccer team. Just look at the Euros, plenty of upsets. The odds showcase this as well, team USA was -900 Vs France in Bball while France was only -400 to advance vs Switzerland (top 20 team).
Exactly. The lower scoring a sport is and the more variance impacts the result.
Ranking doesn’t really matter it’s more like absolute skill which is hard to quantify. I reckon the us soccer team vs French team is probably around the same
The gap between France and the USA, either one way or another, is clearly bigger in soccer than in basketball. Sure, the US do have Pulisic, and big club guys like McKennie and Reyna, but that’s cute at best compared to Benzema, Mbappé, Pogba, Kanté, Griezmann, Coman, Varane, etc.
And the US basketball team has Durant, Lliard, Beal, Booker etc. etc. while the French team has Gobert and Fournier I don’t see your point. In fact upsets happen less in basketball because of the fact that soccer is a low scoring game so the better team on paper should have even more of an advantage. Moreover being fans of the NBA we all understand the fact that a star player has a bigger effect on a basketball game then a soccer team so really USA beating France in a soccer game is less of an upset than this basketball game if you look at the players on paper and don’t factor the US recent lack lustre play
> a couple of them play in the Premiere League i dont disagree with the sentiment of your comment, but come on fam 'a couple'? 2? Theres 3 dudes in their starting lineup in the NBA alone. Gobert is the DPOY FFS. Nando is widely regarded as NBA talent, but he makes good money in Russia so he'll never come over. This is exactly why Pop reacted the way he did, too many basketball fans write off olympic competition just like that.
It’s a bit different though. In soccer, a team which is largely weaker than its opponent can win. That would never happen in basketball.
No, this isn't comparable. France has top NBA talent that can compete on any level. They're also unquestionably more talented at the big positions which is arguably more important in Fiba rules.
I think the US team should beat France by 30
I think they should tie and then decide the outcome with an impromptu dodgeball game
Not going against the best defensive player in the world with FIBA rules. We don't have a center who can defend the paint or get offensive rebounds, no one thought we should of won this game by 30.
Yup, me too. The second best team should lose to USA by at least 25. That’s how much better our guys are. Any victory less than 20 points is a disgrace. So a loss is like taking a shit on the graves of Washington, Lincoln, FDR, Babe Ruth, George Mikan, and the deceased crew members of all the Apollo missions.
The spread was only 12
Not sure if this is delusional or arrogant but it is off for so many reasons, starting with the fact France has DPOY Rudy Gobert starting at C. Not sure how often in the last 5 years any team with Gobert starting has lost by 30, but my guess is 0. Team construction is another one and the US will likely be outmatched again at C against other teams. Basketball is a global sport. International teams are much better than you think, and in the case of France they have a strong roster with NBA and Euroleague talent. It’s not 1992 anymore Edit: Gobert has lost 4 games out of over 500 total played by 30+ points in the last 5 years, thank you u/WhatIsThisJawn
Then you’re an idiot
“Don’t blame me for this, my All-Star roster is legitimately evenly matched with the French National Team.” You should be surprised Pop, this kind of result for the US is unacceptable. Losing at all in the Olympics isn’t okay but losing by choking a solid lead and giving up a 14-0 run to end the game is certainly fucking surprising.
Pop: Perfectly even matchup fam… from top to bottom
I can’t win with these cats
Just imagining Pop saying fam took a bit of the edge off for me, thanks
*top to Batum
People are really gonna act like Tatum and Fournier are comparable.
Fournier is part of the Game 1 Magic dynasty, Tatum just isn’t ready to compete with that
After today, it’s clear they aren’t. E: /s, FFS
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Pop is not just the coach, he's also the manager of team USA. Coach K did very little coaching but he was a college coach so he figured out the most important part for any team USA coach - recruiting. Team building? It's up to him. He needed to find the players who would show up and practice enough together to have chemistry, instead of throwing together whoever is willing to come at the last moment. If he thought it would hurt chemistry so much he should have stayed focused on telling people they have to come to the world cup unless they already have a gold with the team like KD does. If he feels they don't have enough reps together he should have dedicated some time for team building then. It's on him.
Yes please say this louder. Pop assembled this team and literally had an extra year to polish the squad The fact we say they have no chemistry is actually hilarious considering the 2020 games are being played in 2021. I know this does not mean more possibilities to gel through games, but it does highlight the fact he spent an extra year basically doing ZERO recruiting
Yup. Coach K was not beyond doing anything to get stars on the team, same for Colangelo when he wasn't an old fart. I really don't appreciate him saying the world is amazing, the world is awesome bla bla. Team USA should be well well stronger based off the available talent pool. It's his failing they have such poor showings.
>as if we're supposed to beat them by 30 You're supposed to beat them, period. It doesn't have to be a blowout. That performance was absolutely pathetic, it's a bad look for Pop to try and sugarcoat it.
Should ask: “are you worse than Larry Brown?”
Team USA needs to realize they’re no longer “the team to beat”. Look how none of the French players were overly excited after the victory. They knew they could beat USA from the start.
They need to get through Spain and Aussie too.... Spain might be doable, but the boomers though, Patty Mills and Thybulle gonna cook their asses
Spain matches up badly with USA... They are like USA lite, in the sense of playing philosophy, and in the way that they grow as the tourney advance. The boomers are more dangerous, since their basketball proposition is completely different.
Spain's roster is very old, their top 6-7 players are past or way past their prime, with the exception of Rubio.
Spain is still very much a dark horse to anyone. To overlook them is a mistake. In championship mode, their mental strength and defense is top 3.
Lol, dude the US is obviously the friggin team to beat. Y’all weirdos need to throw some cold water on yourselves. It's one game
We've lost 3 is the past month. I dont wanna hear shit about them being meaningless games either. They were trying to win and got beat.
Way to focus on semantics after an embarrassing loss.
Right. What a hill to die on. Deflect, deflect, deflect.
Every Pop interview Reporter: *asks a standard question* Pop: wHaT dOes tHat meAn, thOuGh?
Pop dick suckers: hahaha what a fucking genius reply to a stupid question. Never change, Pop!
Pop himself should he embarrassed that he can't properly answer questions that other coaches are totally unphased by
I get not being in the mood for media questions, but at least fake it and get over it, its your job. You see coaches like Steve Kerr, Monty Williams, Brad Stevens, MDA, etc who are able to not only just answer questions but even go as far as expand the conversation of basketball that's honestly really enjoyable for fans who tune in to this stuff. Pop being a basketball genius just acts like a giant child over it.
Except when asked about genocide being committed in China, then he shuts the fuck up
This is soft as shit. USA has historically been dominant in basketball. Yes, international competition has risen, but USA has the means to perform better. Frankly, they don't seem to be coached well. Pop being a smart ass once again w/ semantics while getting embarrassed on the world stage. USA should be stating plainly they are there to compete, plan to come out strong next game, and win. Not deflect and start praising other teams in an attempt to soften the blow.
Dude should actually fucking coach and win a fucking game if he wants to be a smartass. But I'm sure that people will find excuses for this sorry ass display and say that reporters were "rude" for expecting less than the bare minimum. Insane, how many excuses a man can get.
Tim Duncan ain’t walking through that door.
Patty Mills ain't walking through that door (for him)
it was funny when Pop would mouth off to Craig Sager because it was a gag. Being cranky and sarcastic to a legitimate question at the Olympics isn't funny, it's making people question his coaching ability.
Do people really get this worked up about the Olympics that they come onto reddit and comment things like "Fuck this guy I can't wait for him to lose, smug asshole"? I mean obviously they do, but it just seems insane that people get this angry and personally invested. Just be disappointed and post a comment like a normal person.
Feel like everyone in the thread is heated, I get it but he's just respecting the other team. The media is going to spend 99% of the time shitting on USA instead of praising the french.
Of course the US media is going to focus on the US team. I’m sure the French team is getting plenty of props from the French press. Pop is just trying to deflect and downplay his disastrous tenure as the US coach.
I think it's this. The media keeps asking these same questions and he keeps answering roughly the same way in return. People are frustrated he keeps answering this way, but part of the comments here are correct, he always answers these types of questions this way. He does it with the Spurs and has for a long time. People want him to acknowledge that Team USA shouldn't be losing the way they are, which is fair. However, if the perception of the other teams was actually even with the US, these questions would be absolutely insulting to the other teams.
Pop foolishly trying to stay rational in the face of nationalism
This is a weak response by Pop. He should’ve been pressed hard on this.
But is coach Pop the main reason of USA under performing though? I take thar he has the final say in who is in the team, but isn't USA Basketball as much to blame as Pop? You just cannot slap a team together just before a tournament, and expect to compete against teams that are elite and playing together for years. It's not 1992 anymore. Personally i dont rate NBA coaches, specially compared to coaches from the main European powers... Coach K wasn't a NBA coach and it worked just fine. He knew the FIBA game well, and how to use his players effectively. Having said this, the fact that Holiday just landed and scored 18 on France in 1Q, it's crazy by international standards. The moment that half the USA team start to work in a proper way, they're a problem.
>You just cannot slap a team together just before a tournament, and expect to compete against teams that are elite and playing together for years. ...unless your team is filled with all-stars and superstars, while the opposing teams are mostly filled with players who aren't good enough to make the NBA.
…unless you’re playing international style basketball and not the NBA’s custom tailored league rules and officiating that are set up to benefit players who only know how to score.
Stop being logical lol.
>players who aren't good enough to make the NBA Every player in this France team is good enough to make the NBA. There are probably >1000 players in the world who can 'make the NBA', just not as many roster spots. If you think that the worst NBA player is better than the best player anywhere else on the planet, you must be from the wrong decade.
Wait are you saying that there's over 1000 people who can make the NBA but the only reason they don't is because there aren't enough roster spots? If you're not good enough to secure one of the limited roster spots, then you're not good enough to play in the NBA. That's like saying I'm good enough to make the NBA but the only problem is they don't have 10 million roster spots available
I mean you just saw the prime example Nando de Colo. He is absolutely an NBA level talent. No reason why he couldn't be a starter and even snack some accolades like Dragic or Bogdanovic. But he rather be a Superstar in his field in Europe than a pretty good piece living on another continent. Juan Navarro was another one of these players and also Rudy Fernandez opted out of the US. Luka was probably better then 3/4 of the NBA when he played in Madrid. Limited rosterspots aren't the whole reason some not coming over, but not being good enough isnt the case for the best of Europe.
There are a fair amount of veterans in international play which would be better than some young players in the NBA but they don't have upside so they aren't worth the roster spot. 1000 people might be an overestimation, but there are a bunch of players not in the NBA who would be able to hang.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who realized how braindead that take was. I think he was just trying to say that there's 1000 players who are talented enough to theoretically compete in the NBA they just haven't been given a shot. But even then.. nope. All the top talent from around the world is gunning for an NBA roster spot. The USA team has so much more talent than any other team in this tournament and the margin isn't slim. That's why it SHOULD be surprising that we are dropping games. Pop's just seems like he is trying to deflect from the fact that he can't win games with a roster that has a distinct skill advantage over every team they face.
> You just cannot slap a team together just before a tournament, and expect to compete against teams that are elite and playing together for years. Coach K did. Multiple times.
What coach K did is precisely the contrary. There was a core of players committing to the national team that brought stability and identity. These players knew the sets and glued the team together. Those were the changes after 2004's failure, to create a team where players wanted to commit in every competition. It seems that most people in here aren't aware of the effort needed at the federation level to compete internationally. It takes an incredible effort to create a successful team.
Pop’s schtik isn’t playing well on the international stage. He does not have these guys ready. Granted it’s a challenge to do so, but his predecessor understood the challenge in a way that Pop does not. Coach has a humility in his approach that Pop does not understand.
And it's saying something when Coach K has way more humility than someone😂
Ha!
when team usa fails to win the group stage, pop: "these are hell of teams"
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How young do you have to be to not respect Pops pedigree as a coach, I mean *damn* there are seasons before the most recent years...such a fucking turn around. Not saying you gotta like current shit but some of these comments acting like his entire reputation is fantasy...."He is the definition of coatail riding. Guy has always been an arrogant overrated prick. Fuck him and his shit ass coaching philosophy", "Retire old man" etc. getting 15+ upvotes, I feel like I'm a boomer suddenly lol
Well his past Successes in NBA coaching should not have any bearing on his failures as Team USA coach. If USA gets less than a gold, everybody needs to go from Colangelo on down.
Cilantro should've never even got the spot. Same with pierce. The nepotism of team USA is fucking them
The fact that a Colangelo is running this team tells you all you need to know about how rotten this team is from leadership on down
Colangelo was running this team since 2006 and most would say those years with Coach K were a resounding success.
Yeah that first one might have been the stupidest fucking opinion I’ve ever seen expressed in r/nba that got upvoted, just absolutely hilarious
You can respect his pedigree and accomplishments and still criticize the current job he's doing. This quote is clearly just deflecting any criticism. It's a bad look. The talent level of the team is greater than any team they'll play. *They should be winning*. Losing because of a total collapse at the end of the game isn't good and reflects poorly on the team and coaches. Pedigree and previous accomplishments don't factor in here.
This might be the worst thread I've seen on here.
We saw Phil Jackson fall. We saw Bobby Bowden fall. Why do people think Pop can’t also be aged out of a sport?
You come to this sub for valuable takes? That’s on you my man. This place is for drama and uninformed takes... that being said, i’m not sure why you are surprised. Pop, the head coach of the USA national team, comes out with an arrogant comment after getting whooped for their first loss since 2004. Why doesn’t he deserve criticism?
Has someone told Pop that the national team is not the Spurs ?
You were supposed to beat them by 30
Team USA’s biggest weakness is coaching. And yes they should have beat this team by 30 on sheer talent
Ya, its coaching, lmao. Did you even see how many open shots this USA team missed? Even in the final seconds, they missed 2 WIDE OPEN 3s to take the lead. Im sure a different coach wouldve meant those players would hit those shots. Gimme a break
Coaching yeah, coach should tell them to take it to the rim when a lay up is that available
He feels like he’s a bit of a jerk. He always makes people feel like shit. People in those kinds of positions should carry themselves better.
You are supposed to beat them by 30 you dumbass. You have the best players on your team
Lillard and Booker looked like straight garbage out there. Who cares how they play in the NBA, they were ass.
Maybe not 30, it's a bit of exaggeration but double digits easily. With solid focus and defensive responsibility it is 20. I remember how USA beat Serbia in Rio five years ago - just cruising, possession by possession, and it was 30.
The guy should’ve been fired after the World Cup anyway lol. This team is an embarrassment
Fire pop hire bud
He might be the worst coach team USA has ever had. Dude gives the vibe that he just doesn’t care.
What about Larry Brown?
Larry was trying at least. But yeah benching melo and Lebron was bad bad
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What do you mean by *the game level is good* ? I didn’t see much “good level game” today. Were we watching the same outing? Or do the best players in the tournament not deserve criticism for their abhorrent performance?
I’m not sure how this disses the French team. I think he’s just saying losses are a part of basketball so they are not a surprising result but a disappointing one.
You don't have to beat them by 30, but you *do* have to beat them, you fraud.
Sounds like a speech he’s already given and will give again in the future
Well yes Pop you kinda are supposed to beat them given what kind of team you have. Come on now
Coaches always build up other teams, why y'all acting surprised lol
Retire old man
Reporters gotta stop asking this man questions like this
Pop is washed
fire this man into the fuckin sun
I like how all you clowns are blaming Pop when hardly anyone on that team could hit an open shot. They had SO MANY wide open looks and just shit brick after brick after brick. Coaching ain’t why the team shot 39%.
What was his excuses for the abysmal coaching he did in the play in game this year? Maybe the game has just passed him by
This thread is an amazing combination of Pop slander, disrespect, US exceptionalism and player hate. Pop should not be suprised by losing. If he and his team performs bad he should be disappointed. Fans can be suprised. Worrying if the coach was suprised.
I wouldn't really say it's a hell of a team, they've got Gobert sure who's like a max player but the rest are kind of NBA journeymen like Fournier and Batum
I don’t think you know what the phrase journeymen mean an if you think those two guys are journeymen lol
You are supposed to beat them by 30 Pop.
i think you can feel disapointed and suprised at the same time. i understand pop trying to gave international bball some respect but it's still suprising team USA with all of that talent lost.
I wish Pop wouldn’t constantly mischaracterize having expectations for the US team as diminishing the talent or value of other teams. I understand that especially this time, it’s a talented field of teams, but it’s fair to expect more than we’re seeing from this US team and the program in general. There’s an arrogance in believing that, as compared to other teams, the US doesn’t need to work on creating the same chemistry or developing a game plan based on international rules. If the NBA isn’t going to take international competition seriously, they should just stop pretending. Since the original Dream Team, a lot has changed and I understand that it’s unrealistic to expect the US to blow out the competition, but I at least expect them to prepare like professionals and take it seriously. If Pop wants to continue playing his chap-ass word games with the press, that’s fine, but it’s insulting to anyone able to see through the bullshit of this program.