3 years ago
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SAITAMA, Japan — After The Team Not Allowed to Lose rolled to the Olympic golden medal crippled by blowing retired Australia 97-78, manager Gregg Popovich sat down successful beforehand of a microphone Thursday and tried his polite champion not to beryllium an Ugly American.
For astir 13 minutes of his postgame quality conference, Pop was transportation perfect. He was successful turns funny, humble and insightful, astatine 1 constituent saluting Samantha Dutton for allowing her boyfriend, Khris Middleton, to articulation a hoops junket to Japan instantly aft the commencement of a baby.
After beguiling the media, however, Popovich slipped backmost into a much acquainted relation astatine the precise extremity of his chat with the media. It happened erstwhile an unsuspecting writer from Slovenia got up and asked the infamously irascible manager if helium would alternatively look wunderkind Luka Doncic oregon feisty France successful the title game.
Rut-roh.
“You truly deliberation I’m going to reply that question? How agelong person you been a reporter?” retorted Popovich, sharpening his lingua with the feigned indignation that has wilted excessively galore ink-stained wretches and talking heads to count. “You indispensable beryllium talking to immoderate dumb coaches. I wouldn’t interaction that with a 10-foot pole. You’ve got to beryllium kidding.”
Tirade finished and ngo accomplished, Coach Pop walked disconnected the dais with a self-satisfied smirk, but not earlier flashing 2 thumbs up to his caller bestie successful the Fourth Estate from Slovenia.
Now 72 years old, Popovich has been making reporters consciousness 3 inches gangly for astir a generation. It’s a tried-and-true act. Reminds maine a small of Wayne Newton singing “Danke Schoen.” Makes maine chuckle each time.
Pop loves to play atrocious cop. There’s a method to his madness.
In this peculiar case, arsenic the pb manager connected the seat for The Team Never Allowed To Lose, helium uses Ugly American rants arsenic a sponge to soak up the disapproval directed astatine his NBA superstars whenever they amusement a hint of vulnerability. He past did it erstwhile the Americans opened the Olympic tourney with a shocking 83-76 nonaccomplishment to Evan Fournier and France.
I’m truthful aged I retrieve erstwhile Magic Johnson and Larry Bird went to the Olympics connected a busman’s holiday, utilizing teams from astir the globe arsenic hoops props. Well, times person changed. No dynasty lives forever. As the crippled has grown, truthful has the situation for The Team Never Allowed to Lose.
In the semifinals, The Team Never Allowed to Lose fell down Australia 41-26 midway done the 2nd 4th earlier facing the euphony of Coach Pop during a timeout. “They sliced and diced america and we looked similar we ne'er played unneurotic earlier astatine the antiaircraft extremity of the court, which successful immoderate respects is true, I guess,” helium said.
Give the grizzled manager recognition for gathering the chemistry of a roster filled with stars not accustomed to suppressing the tendency to beryllium the hero.
“We conscionable archer the truth,” said Popovich, applauding this U.S. squad for taking disapproval to bosom alternatively than being slaves to ego.
“I springiness them recognition for knowing the crippled arsenic good arsenic they bash and being capable to judge the truth. With immoderate players, you tin archer them thing and they don’t bargain it, due to the fact that they can’t grip definite types of criticism. These guys privation the truth.”
What turned the momentum astir against Australia, different than the realization that defending the overgarment mightiness beryllium a bully idea? Two words: Kevin Durant.
“We each cognize who helium is. Probably the champion subordinate successful the world,” U.S. defender Damian Lillard said. “You get successful a mounting similar this and with that tallness and athleticism, the quality to sprout and handle, cipher tin halt him.”
During a agelong of 8 minutes and 36 seconds connected some sides of halftime, the USA outscored Australia 26-4, with Durant fueling the blitz with 17 points.
For years, the motto of The Team Never Allowed to Lose has been: Strong Faces.
What does that mean? Never complain. Never fto ’em spot you sweat. Never marque excuses.
When the going got pugnacious aboriginal against the scrappy Aussies, led by Utah Jazz sharpshooter Joe Ingles and NBA seasoned Patty Mills, the Americans refused to panic.
Durant explained: “There were a batch of guys connected this squad that had consecutive faces and were acceptable to play erstwhile we were down 15. ‘Strong Faces‘ is what Pop said. They came retired and deed america with a bully haymaker, and we were capable to get backmost up.”
Strong Faces are required of American hoops players held to a modular and unfastened to disapproval that nary different subordinate of the U.S. Olympic delegation has to endure aft a mediocre performance.
“I copied that from Coach K,” said Popovich, referencing a word coined by Mike Krzyzewski, longtime manager of the U.S. nationalist team. “It’s basically: Play connected to the adjacent play. You don’t respond to a teammate’s turnover oregon the referee’s call. The information that you miss a shot? Nobody cares. You don’t person that right. You’re liable to your squad to determination connected to the adjacent play. And helium called it Strong Faces.”
Since Magic and Bird played similar a imagination mode backmost successful 1992, the Americans ain a 57-4 grounds connected the tribunal astatine the Summer Games. But is near-perfection bully capable for you, maine oregon immoderate different second-guessers connected the sofa backmost successful the USA?
Not really. That’s wherefore Strong Faces are modular contented with each red, achromatic and bluish uniform.
The Team Never Allowed To Lose is present 4 quarters distant from achieving what everyone successful America ever counts connected them to do:
Bring location the gold.
Don’t messiness it up, fellas.
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