Popovich Vs. Stern

When I heard the Spurs/Popovich got fined for resting their stars at last week's game vs. the Heat, I had to laugh.  David Stern is an asshole plain and simple.  Pops wanted to give his guys a rest.  This isn't any sort of breaking news.  He has done it for years.  Stern's beef was just due to the fact it was a prime time game versus the defending champions.  It was strictly business related.  Whereas Popovich just wanted to rest his veteran stars, so they could be ready for the long haul.  (The NBA season isn't a race, it's marathon. Pops knows this.  And he has 4 rings so I think he knows what he's doing.)

Stern wanted the marquee Spurs playing to get the best possible ratings, and to appease the fans in attendance.  Yeah I get that.  However, is ONE game really going to make that big of difference on his bottom line?  My friend said, "If they can't get ratings with LeBron playing then that is just sad."  How do you argue that?  The Spurs are the supposed "boring" team anyway, so why should it matter who plays?

Popovich knows beating the Heat in December means nothing.  Like I said, he's looking at the big picture, and yes he is borderline arrogant for resting them against the best team in the league, but if it does get them to the Finals in June does it really matter?

In an ironic twist, the Heat vs. the "B" team element made the game more interesting because it was competitive and the Spurs almost won despite their supposed shortcomings!  Shame on you Stern for being so greedy.