First, I’m not here to say Pop is washed and too old, and he hasn’t adapted to todays NBA game. I think the 2014 championship which ushered in the type of play we see today was due to Pops coaching of that style. He is able to put together teams that compete so I will definitely give him props for that.
When I say Pop needs to get over himself, I’m referring to his interactions with the media. Dude was asked yesterday during the game, ‘How do you disrupt the Knicks offense?’ And he looks at the person asking the question like they just grew a second head, repeats the question then says something like, ‘ I dunno.’ Obviously leaving the viewer with the impression he thought that was a dumb question.
Maybe he really thinks it was a stupid question but holy shit dude… be a fucking human. How hard would it have been to say something like, ‘we have to stay on their shooters more because they’re getting wide open threes.’
Simple… instead, he does this stupid little act like the question is so absurd that he won’t answer it… GET OVER YOURSELF POP! Be a professional and treat others better than you have been.
Especially for someone his age, it seems kinda fucked he still does that shit. It ain’t cute and my 12 year old niece had better manners than that.
You realize everyone is in on the act, right? He’s loved by basically everyone associated with the NBA not named Stephen Jackson, and that goes for the media as well. They know the deal and work extra to get an honest answer out of him, and in this case “I don’t know” was probably pretty damn honest. When the cameras are on Pop plays cranky old man. When they’re off he’s, by all accounts from those who have spent time with him over the last three decades, as supportive, personable, engaging, and as real as it gets.