Whenever Coach Pop speaks, others should listen intently
Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012Rubio’s fourth quarter poise gets noticed
On the merits of the T-Wolves’ increased use of the Pick-and-Roll:
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After Monday’s morning shootaround Popovich talked at some length about his impressions of Rubio and the retooled Wolves lineup.
“There are a lot of changes, not just Ricky Rubio,” Popovich said. “But you can see a lot of good.”
Especially when it comes to the relatively pared-down Wolves offense late in games.
“It’s basketball,” he said. “We all run the pick-and-roll. John [Stockton] and Karl [Malone] ran the pick-and-roll [in Utah] for a gazillion years. It was pretty simple, but it depends on who’s doing it. And [Rubio] is very good at it. No reason to make something complicated if someone is great at doing something simple.”
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On the improvement of Kevin Love:
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“He’s more confident than ever. In the past he wondered, ‘Should I shoot this shot or not?’ Now he knows. He knows he’s a stud. He’s out there to win and to kick … ”
Well, you can finish the rest.
“He’s a complete pro at this point who knows he’s one of the best players in the league,” Popovich said.
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On the coaching ability of Rick Adelman:
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“Rick has, in many ways, been under the radar for a long time,” Popovich said. “He’s always one of the first people owners want to hire, but he always manages to stay in the background, because he’s that kind of guy. But he probably did a better job than anybody in the league for two, three, four years in Houston with all the injuries they had. I’m not sure anybody figured that out.”
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On the recent direction of so-called ‘American culture’:
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“These guys, they travel around the world,” Popovich said of international players such as Rubio and Ginobili. “They’re more cultured than we are. Everyone acts like Americans are the ones … we have sort of an arrogance about us. Like we’re the cultured ones? Are you serious?
”Have you watched TV lately? Have you seen what Americans do? How many languages do you speak? And you wonder how they’re going to adjust to our culture? I hope they avoid it and keep their own!“
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Classic stuff, on several fronts, from one of the very best coaches in the history of the NBA.



