With their newest NBA championship banner hanging high above the sellout crowd and the players looking like kids in a candy store as they examined their shiny new championship rings, it was understandably a challenge for the team to buckle down for a regular old basketball game.
The Spurs eventually did, beating the Portland Trail Blazers 106-97 Tuesday night. And even Popovich was willing to overlook the occasional lack of concentration.
“I think the ring ceremony is always a little bit emotional and always a lot of fun,” Popovich said. “It probably keeps you from being your best as far as focus is concerned.”
But losing focus to the point of losing a game is just not the Spurs’ style.
“It’s always a special game when you play after a ring ceremony,” Parker said. “It’s great memories. But we’re back to work and ready to defend our title.”
Aside from the win and the rings, there was other news to please Popovich. Star Tim Duncan had reached an agreement to stay until the end of the 2011-12 season and likely finish his career in Texas.
Duncan had 24 points and 13 rebounds as the Spurs got their title defense off to a successful start. Parker added 19 points for the Spurs and Manu Ginobili had 16 points and eight assists off the bench.
LaMarcus Aldridge led the Trail Blazers with 27 points. Martell Webster added 21 and Joel Przybilla contributed 13 points and 10 rebounds for Portland.
“We played a very talented team, a very young team. I think they’re going to be pretty good,” Parker said. “They played a tough game. They stayed in the game, and we didn’t shoot the ball well from outside.”
Aldridge said he’s using the Spurs as motivation.
“I was so pumped and I was so excited because I feel one day we are going to be in that position where we’re going to win and get our rings one night,” he said. “I felt like tonight was our first step in that direction.”
Despite the long-awaited ring ceremony to kick things off, the game didn’t have quite the excitement that was anticipated when it was announced the Spurs would open against the Trail Blazers, who drafted center Greg Oden with the No. 1 overall pick. Oden had microfracture knee surgery this summer, ending his first season before practice even began.
“We were definitely looking forward to having Greg,” Webster said. “That doesn’t stop our journey. Our journey is to get to the playoffs. Can’t say anything about championships. Mostly, we want to take this one game at a time.”
With Oden out, it only seemed appropriate that this night would be all about the Spurs.
And it was, with the Spurs controlling the game until the Trail Blazers threatened with about two minutes to play in the fourth quarter. Aldridge’s basket brought the Blazers within three points, the closest they’d been all quarter, with 2:01 left.
Parker made it 100-95 for San Antonio, then a goaltending call against Aldridge gave Parker another basket, putting the Spurs up 102-95 with 1:07 to play.
Brandon Roy, last season’s Rookie of the Year, hit one of two free throws to make it 102-96. But another goaltending call, this time against Przybilla, gave Duncan a basket and the Spurs a 104-96 lead with 36 ticks on the clock.
