Let me be one of the last to say congratulations. On Monday night, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich became the ninth NBA head coach to lead his team to 1,000 regular season victories. While the five-time champion didn't stray from his stoicism in the face of this achievement, every sports outlet from San Diego to Bangor is in the process of heaping praise on the Association's longest (current) tenured coach. Even though my writing is a fraction of a pixel on the Internet canvas, I'd like to offer an idea of how rare his air is getting.
In the modern age of basketball, you can say only a couple of pro coaches have achieved at a higher level than Pop ... Phil Jackson and Pat Riley. Over the last 18-plus seasons, the Spurs' leader has notched victories at a rate few can match. His .684 winning percentage is second to Jackson among coaches that have been on the sidelines for 10 seasons or more (fifth-best when you include all NBA coaches).
The success over 82-contest "marathons" is nearly unprecedented. Going into October of 2013, Popovich had won 50 games or more in each of the last 15 seasons, including the 66-game, strike-shortened 2011-2012 season. The only reason that stretch isn't at 17 years is due to the other strike-shortened season (50 games in 1998-1999 ... his first championship year).
As far as making it to the "second season," he has also been the model of consistency. In their 18 previous attempts, Pop-led teams have made the playoffs 17 times. Only two men with that amount of tenure have been as successful. Jackson is one (made it in each of his 20 seasons). Red Auerbach is the other (made it in 19 of his 20 seasons running the Celtics).
Once he's in the postseason, the numbers only continue to stagger the mind. Realizing that the playoff structure has changed over the existence of the Association, it still holds weight that Popovich's 149 postseason wins are third most among all coaches (behind Jackson and Riley). He comes in at a meager seventh on the winning percentage list, but five of the coaches ahead of him (Butch Van Breda Kolff being the exception) have at least one championship on their resumes. And even though it took him more than a "hot minute" to amass his five rings, the fact that his teams won titles 15 years apart only amplifies that notion of consistency.
Like all great coaches, Popovich had some help along the way. He acknowledged that fact after Monday's historic victory. If fate didn't lead him to an interim stint where David Robinson got injured, then Tim Duncan doesn't basically fall in their lap. With no Duncan (the consensus NCAA Player of the Year in 1997), it's hard to tell whether this franchise would have gotten off the ground after Robinson's retirement. However, Pop does deserve a lot of credit for his own skills in developing players. Who in their right mind could have foreseen the impact French point guard Tony Parker (28th pick in the 1st round of the 2001 Draft) and Argentinian shooting guard Manu Ginobili (28th pick in the second round of the 1999 draft) would have in, now, more than two dozen combined years of NBA experience.
Through all of his success, though, it's one trait of Popovich that causes me to salute his greatness above all the others. When it comes to coaching, there are those that choose to teach through a certain system/way of thinking. Some others go through their own learning curve, finding different solutions to issues and implementing changes when necessary. Riley famously did this during his time on the bench. While in charge of the Lakers, his "Showtime" offense would run and gun with anybody out there. After switching coasts, Riley's focus turned defensive. As coach of the Knicks and Heat, his teams were better known for their tenacity, grit, stinginess, and, at times, boorish behavior.
The Spurs of the last 15 years basically reflect that kind of change, only flipped around. During their five-season heyday of 2002-2007, the team ranked in the top three in the NBA for points allowed per game (3rd, tied for 1st, 1st, 2nd, and 1st, respectively). Their offense? Let's just say that being in the top half was a good showing, with their high water mark being 98.5 ppg in '06-'07.
But over the last two seasons, watching a San Antonio game has become quite a different experience. The organization still stresses playing better than average defense (papg: 11th in '12-'13, 6th in '13-'14). However, the offense has really kicked in. After setting a scoring average mark of 103.0 ppg in '12-'13 (good for 4th in the league), they upped it to 105.4 ppg last season (still good for 6th in the Association). In my opinion, this change in style of play shows that a man like Pop isn't interested in making players fit one way of thinking. He can adapt and adjust to several situations. For me, that's a sign of what makes a coach elite.
So, with a new milestone in place, the league's current "Dean of Head Coaches" can look ahead to defending another title. However, Gregg Popovich, you should really take a moment or two of reflection. For a man known by his rather terse answers to sideline reporters, you taken quite a long, tedious trek to add three zeroes to the end of that initial "1" you earned more than eighteen years ago. For that, we raise a glass and say "Čestitam!"
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