It seemed as if the Spurs enjoyed their trip to NYC again. We all know Pop likes the finer things in life — good food, good wine, etc. He enjoys his trips to the big towns with good selections of the same every time out. He apparently loves Madison Square Garden, telling the media that its the best in the world.
“I said, ‘You guys are now in the best arena to play basketball that you’ll ever be in,’” Popovich said.
Nothing changed for the coach even after San Antonio’s third consecutive loss.
“Maybe it’s just the history,” he said. “I’ve seen a lot in my years, as far back as I can remember, even as a kid. I got to see Dick Barnett tonight, and Walt [Clyde Frazier] was sitting across the court. The fans are great. The way things are set up, it’s iconic.”
My brother’s friend is a Knicks fan, and was talking the noise during the game. I said the ‘99 win is the forever trump card. Maybe that is partly why Pop loves the Garden so much. He spilt the champagne there, folks.
My alma mater won the NIT Tournament, and I think the one part that made it less special than it could have been was that it was in Las Vegas and not the World’s Most Famous Arena. But a thing that makes MSG special is really the people. East Coasters in general appreciate hoop more than your average Left Coaster. The per-capita hoops knowledge in the Garden (they say) is higher, and so people appreciate a good show. Why put on a show at MSG? Well for the greats, it was to do it in an iconic spot, but also for people who would appreciate it.
In any case, I am not going to pick on Wemby for struggling a bit in his NY debut. The kid is 19 and as Mike Wright said, the staff is still in wait-and-see mode. It is smart, but also can spell some frustration for those of us who want to see Wemby put up big numbers.
When it comes in the flow of a game — that easy 38 he put up just doing basketball stuff vs PHX — it is nice. The problem is that good defenses (ahem, Thibs) will know how to eliminate some of that hustle stuff with some physicality and hustle of their own. Bumping him out of the lane, and not allowing easy backdoor cuts are a way to eliminate or reduce the odds of the lob to a giant.
When you aren’t scheming up plays for your best guy, it makes it a little harder but the Spurs have a longer-term picture in mind. Right now it is about acclimation. It is about learning to be an NBA professional. Keeping the game simple, and about learning means some present-day sacrifices, but long-run wins.
Some SpursTalgia:
I thought about iconic venues in which to watch sporting events, and I’ve been to a few in football and soccer (Cotton Bowl, Camp Nou) but I don’t know if I have a bucket list in hoops. Let me create one:
MSG
Cameron Indoor
I don’t have a third.
I’ve been to Staples Center, when it was still called that. I’ve been to the AAC, The Dome, the SBC/AT&T/Frost Bank Center, Capital One Arena. To me, an arena is an arena and there is very little that changes it up. In LA it is weird to see so many celebrities. In DC, I think Stephen A Smith was there for some reason.
For hoops, I just want the game to be the product. I dislike (greatly) the in-arena hype stuff. The Spurs’ dude in the stands, calling me Spurs Family or whatever. It just isn’t for me.
The NBA is far and a way the better on-court product, but college hoops is a super value for your buck. You get a wide variety of floor set ups, for one. UT-Arlington played on a stage for a while, Texas State had a huge wall on one side before upgrading their spot. UTSA plays in like, a converted garage. The CUSA Tournament is played on a football field with two courts. It’s all wild. You get some intense games, up close for cheap, and a lot of talent. Current Spur Charles Bassey played for WKU, and played on the football field (it was concrete of course) at the Hoops at the Star in Frisco.
I’ve seen games in some weird places and the game is what makes the event and the location. When the Spurs played in the Finals, I had seats up against the roof, folks. There was no place I’d have rather been.