San Antonio Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich Fires Back At Suns Owner
By Phil Watson
Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver apologized to fans Thursday to apologize, taking a swipe at San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich. Popovich fired back.
San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich took the bait Saturday when he was asked about Robert Sarver, the Phoenix Suns owner who apologized to his fans Thursday late in a 121-90 Phoenix win over a Spurs team that left several players home for the preseason game.
Popovich was asked about the apology, during which Sarver grabbed the public address microphone late in the game and offered credit to ticketed fans.
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Popovich didn’t attend the game and neither did Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Kawhi Leonard, Patrick Mills and Tiago Splitter.
"“Most wise individuals would check facts before they made statements,” Popovich said, via the San Antonio Express-News. “Unless you’re interested in putting on a show. In that case, the facts get in your way, as in this case.“We had five guys we didn’t send. Patty Mills had a shoulder operation over the summer. Tiago Splitter has been out the whole preseason. Kawhi Leonard was out and is still out for 10 more days. The other two, Duncan and Ginobili, are two of the oldest guys in the league who just came back from a 13-day European trip.“The only thing that surprises me is that he didn’t say it in a chicken suit. I’ll just leave it at that.”"
That’s a direct reference to a 2005 incident when Sarver mocked the Spurs by flapping his arms like a chicken after Popovich sat out Duncan and Ginobili for a regular-season game.
Before Thursday, San Antonio notified the press several days in advance that Duncan and Ginobili would be resting for the game in Phoenix and that Leonard (eye infection) would join Splitter (calf) and Mills (shoulder) on the injury report.
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