[NittanyBuc]

Discuss.

[Mauro Pedrosa]

Bad move by the NBA.

The Spurs almost won the game too

The coach should do whatever the hell he wants, they didn't go there trying to lose (like it happened in the Olympics). They were just resting because they were playing the 4th road game in 5 nights while the Heat were playing their first game in 5 days.

[~O~]

The NBA can do this? WHAT THE *****???

[galantvr4]

Last time I checked, Pops job is to win games. Stern is something else.

[deadman54]

whats the bet that next time pop wants to this they start play 2 minutes and then are sat out for the rest of game. i think that is more of a rip off to the fans than them not being there at all.

[PatrickChewing]

funny thing is this wasn't even the first time pop did this
this game is just further proof that pop is one hell of a coach, it wasn't just the big 3 and danny green that he sent home they were missing kawhi leonard and stephen jackson because of injury, that's 6 of his best players! and his Spurs managed to stay neck and neck and even almost win
it was literally a bunch of no name players v. the world champ Miami Heat AT Miami!
i think we all knew splitter could play but i was really impressed by that De Colo kid 15pts 6 rebs 5asts 1stl not bad for a "no-name"

[Matthew]

First, I should say that I am glad that they did not rest the players against Orlando. I was at the game and enjoyed being able to see them. So, I get the fan's point of view. Of course, it is a let down when the opposing team does not play their best players. However, when you are fan of the Heat, you pretty much have some of the biggest stars on your roster already. Guys that most other fans rearrange their schedule so they can see LBJ, Wade & Bosh in person. So, count your blessings.

But, getting to the point of this discussion... there should be no way that the NBA can regulate which players are played. I understand that it was the big game of the week for TNT. But, I am sure the NBA will be glad when the Spurs make into the Playoffs with a healthy roster. You would think that the league would rather have the players miss a game here and there during the season so they are healthy in the post season... which is where all the money comes in for the league.

I think they overstepped their boundaries on this one. It's not like the Spurs were tanking the season or anything. In fact, they rested them for quite the opposite reason.

[~O~]

Greg Popovich seems like he's against the NBA's marketing strategy. This strategy is to make sure the most popular product is seen on tv rather than the product advertisement distributed evenly. No casual fan wants to witness this. They want to witness the best but never have the opportunity to witness the worst becoming the best unless their among the local die hard fans. We're witnessing superstars but not the rise of superstars.

When it comes to the teams in the NBA, casual fans would know more about the heavily advertised brand in terms of relevance and popularity. Its similar to awareness of companies that manufacture electronics. People only know whats advertised unless they do their research.

I for one, support Greg Popovich. What fans need to learn about themselves is that they shouldn't support specific players but support their team as a whole. The only exception is a team with Chris Duhon on the roster list.

[NittanyBuc]

I can see why Stern is upset, being that the game was on primetime national TV, but it's not like Pop is some novice coach. He's done this before and his teams are always competitive.

Stern says that the Spurs should have notified Miami earlier, but really what difference would it have made? It was still going to be on TNT.

Realistically, I'm not sure there's a fair solution to this. Stern wants to protect the marketing of the league, as O stated, but Pop is doing what's best for his team. Just a conflict of interests is all.

[OB3LISK]

~O~, on 01 December 2012 - 02:21 PM, said:

What fans need to learn about themselves is that they shouldn't support specific players but support their team as a whole.

Sorry but that just isn't going to happen. It's one thing to support a team if they're your home team and you're rooting for them to win the playoffs, but when it comes to fans buying tickets to individual games, you're paying for that specific game because you went to see a specific player on the opponent team, not the opponent team itself.

However, I think, as Popovich said, its between the team owner and the coach (and the players) to decide who plays. Not the NBA. At the end of the season right before playoffs coaches sit players to rest, so what's the difference now? The $250, 000 fine was ridiculous, and even if it was justified it was much too excessive.

I also think this brings up a point that the NBA schedule is too poorly organized and for the next season needs to be corrected and games need to be properly spaced out for all teams.

Oh and also I disagree with the big Spurs players playing for a few minutes or even going to Miami it all, travelling in itself (even if it's just from Orlando to Miami) is very fatiguing and would be a waste of time they could be using to rejuvenate.

[Kobias Hanthony]

I don't get why they played everyone against us and then rested them against the defending champs.

[~O~]

I can see why Greg would have rested his players. Through an analysis of the Miami Heat's schedule, the Heat received almost 5 days of rest before the scheduled game. They had plenty of time to prepare for the starters of the Spurs while the Spurs had half a day. They played the Orlando Magic the day before that.

Who are the odds in favor of?