Pops: Kawhi is the best player in the NBA

Moderator: G R E Y

User avatar
Nolan
Retired Mod
Retired Mod
Posts: 18,911
And1: 6,611
Joined: Aug 26, 2007
Location: Edmonton AB
   

Pops: Kawhi is the best player in the NBA 

Post#1 » by Nolan » Fri Apr 28, 2017 4:38 pm



That's a bold statement Pop. I don't entirely agree with him but I do think Kawhi is in the top 3 at the very least and number 2 on my list.
@bruce_arthur "And finally, as a whore." RT @docfunk "Here is what LeBron looks like as a Knick, a Fireman, an Astronaut..."
UDRIH14
General Manager
Posts: 7,757
And1: 662
Joined: Jan 27, 2005
Location: Australia

Re: Pops: Kawhi is the best player in the NBA 

Post#2 » by UDRIH14 » Tue May 2, 2017 7:23 am

shouldve kept it to himself then saying it out loud

harden made his case in game 1, maybe he heard what pop said and was offended...so he went feasting in game 1
popfan
Junior
Posts: 472
And1: 224
Joined: Feb 11, 2015

Re: Pops: Kawhi is the best player in the NBA 

Post#3 » by popfan » Thu May 4, 2017 11:38 pm

Considering that Pop is the coach of the US Olympic team, I see this as a bolder statement than if Billy Donovan said that same of Westbrook or if Mike D'Antoni said the same of Harden. I'd imagine one of Pop's responsibilities on the Olympic team would be to massage egos and to appear unbiased. It might be hard to accomplish these when you've announced that your pet player is the best player in the NBA.

Unless it's true.

It's often been said that the team with the best player tends to win the title. It's no guarantee though. But if Pop is right, then perhaps what Pop is subtly saying is that the Spurs are legitimate contenders. Perhaps he believes that the gap between the Warriors and the Spurs is smaller than what most think.

Do I believe that Kawhi is the best player? I'm starting to believe. I underestimated the Spurs 2016-2017 regular season record in part because I overestimated Duncan's importance (at age 40) and severely underestimated Kawhi's growth. At the start of the season, Kawhi put on his Kobe cape and raced through the early season until he hit exhaustion. Then Parker refused to pass to him while LMA publicly questioned Pop's early anointing of Kawhi as their best player. But Kawhi kept his focus while LMA lollygagged. Later in the year his endurance improved. Now he regularly owns both ends of the court in the last 4-5 minutes of a close game without a loss of energy or calmness. That's amazing personal development. I'm starting to believe. Why am I afraid to believe what I see regularly?
humbertomakris
Sophomore
Posts: 110
And1: 37
Joined: Nov 18, 2013

Re: Pops: Kawhi is the best player in the NBA 

Post#4 » by humbertomakris » Fri May 5, 2017 12:02 pm

Purely out of curiosity do you think Kawhi could change position to SG moving forward?

Duncan retired, Ginobili might retire this year and with Parkers injury + age missing most, if not all of next season, would it make sense to move Leonard to the 2 spot and prepare the next generation spur championship teams with him at the 2 instead of the 3/4 ?
With the way Kawhi's skills have developed i think he could make that shift and be even more dominant offensively and defensively.

It should allow more roster construction flexibility moving forward by targeting more wings which, should help counter teams like the warriors/rockets, which seems to be the way the league is moving.

Whats your take ?
User avatar
inDe_eD
Bench Warmer
Posts: 1,293
And1: 869
Joined: Nov 29, 2012
Location: Nashville, TN
 

Re: Pops: Kawhi is the best player in the NBA 

Post#5 » by inDe_eD » Fri May 5, 2017 2:23 pm

humbertomakris wrote:Purely out of curiosity do you think Kawhi could change position to SG moving forward?

Duncan retired, Ginobili might retire this year and with Parkers injury + age missing most, if not all of next season, would it make sense to move Leonard to the 2 spot and prepare the next generation spur championship teams with him at the 2 instead of the 3/4 ?
With the way Kawhi's skills have developed i think he could make that shift and be even more dominant offensively and defensively.

It should allow more roster construction flexibility moving forward by targeting more wings which, should help counter teams like the warriors/rockets, which seems to be the way the league is moving.

Whats your take ?


Honestly, the positions don't matter. We just need to play 3 wings together. Kawhi can be the 2 or 3 or 4 out of those wings.
“Let's say TPE is a big hole, Ryan Anderson is a "power plug Dick" ($21 million a year). All you have to do is use the Dick to plug in. Great trade and great deal! This is called "perfect fit" in the nba.”
humbertomakris
Sophomore
Posts: 110
And1: 37
Joined: Nov 18, 2013

Re: Pops: Kawhi is the best player in the NBA 

Post#6 » by humbertomakris » Fri May 5, 2017 6:47 pm

inDe_eD wrote:
humbertomakris wrote:Purely out of curiosity do you think Kawhi could change position to SG moving forward?

Duncan retired, Ginobili might retire this year and with Parkers injury + age missing most, if not all of next season, would it make sense to move Leonard to the 2 spot and prepare the next generation spur championship teams with him at the 2 instead of the 3/4 ?
With the way Kawhi's skills have developed i think he could make that shift and be even more dominant offensively and defensively.

It should allow more roster construction flexibility moving forward by targeting more wings which, should help counter teams like the warriors/rockets, which seems to be the way the league is moving.

Whats your take ?


Honestly, the positions don't matter. We just need to play 3 wings together. Kawhi can be the 2 or 3 or 4 out of those wings.


yep, fair enough. interchange between wings
zodiac816
Sophomore
Posts: 104
And1: 13
Joined: May 31, 2015
   

Re: Pops: Kawhi is the best player in the NBA 

Post#7 » by zodiac816 » Sat May 20, 2017 12:28 am

After watching Durant for a full season, I'd say he's the best player in the league. He can play and guard any position. His game has no weakness.m I'd put James, Leonard, and Curry very close to him. These players make those around them better too, unlike Hardin and Westbrook
Kawhi_205
Freshman
Posts: 55
And1: 3
Joined: Aug 19, 2017
   

Re: RE: Pops: Kawhi is the best player in the NBA 

Post#8 » by Kawhi_205 » Mon Aug 21, 2017 5:18 am

Nolan wrote:

That's a bold statement Pop. I don't entirely agree with him but I do think Kawhi is in the top 3 at the very least and number 2 on my list.

I totally agree with you, but Kawhi is in race for the 1st place, and I think that he Will earn the MVP at 2018.
Go Spurs, Go! 8-) 8-)
duncan21
Junior
Posts: 324
And1: 63
Joined: Jun 19, 2014

Re: RE: Re: RE: Pops: Kawhi is the best player in the NBA 

Post#9 » by duncan21 » Thu Aug 24, 2017 1:57 am

Kawhi_205 wrote:
Nolan wrote:

That's a bold statement Pop. I don't entirely agree with him but I do think Kawhi is in the top 3 at the very least and number 2 on my list.

I totally agree with you, but Kawhi is in race for the 1st place, and I think that he Will earn the MVP at 2018.

but they hv no chance to winning championship,cause kawhi got no help

Sent from my SM-C5000 using RealGM mobile app

Return to San Antonio Spurs