POP FEARS FOR NEXT SEASON

By Greg Tanner on September 19, 2014

San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich has expressed concern about his players’ psychology, as they attempt toÂ repeat as NBA champs.

Speaking to San Antonio Express News, Pop explainsÂ justÂ how different things will be going for the title this year compared to last seasonÂ -Â when the team was motivated by revenge,Â coming off a demoralising loss in the 2013 NBA Finals.

Reporter Buck Harvey reveals that following the crushingÂ defeat to Miami, Popovich installed a framed picture of the Game 6 scoreboard at the Spurs’ practice facility — frozen not on the end score, but on a moment late in the third quarter when the Spurs led by 13 points, on the verge of clinching the series.

It was a daily reminder of how close the Spurs had come.

But Pops doesn’t have such a motivator this season – and that concerns him.

“I’m worried for one reason,” he says. “They are human beings. They are going to feel satisfied.”

Is Pops just playing pre-season mind-games? Or might the Spurs lack the fire required to retain their NBA title this season?

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