addByline("Peter Stringer", "Celtics.com", "PeterStringer");
SAN ANTONIO – The Celtics will face the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs tonight. They’re looking to get back into the win column first and foremost, but it’s also a learning opportunity whenever you go up against a team that’s a perennial championship contender, or have the opportunity to rub elbows with the greats of the game.
As the Celtics spoke to reporters before Friday’s morning shootaround at the AT&T Center, they talked about some of the lessons learned from being around NBA champions, both players and coaches alike.
Avery Bradley discussed the key to stopping Danny Green in San Antonio tonight, all while recalling many of the lessons learned during his early years on the practice court from guarding former Celtics teammate Ray Allen.
“The key is staying on the body, not giving him any separation at all, especially a shooter like [Green],” Bradley said. “A great shooter like him, his main focus is to try to loose you off of screens. You just have to stay on his body and stay disciplined. And I learned from that from guarding Ray every day in practice.”
Just how helpful was that experience?
“That was big time," Bradley said. "It was really helpful for me, especially because of my teammates, we’d talk trash during practice to each other. It made me better, it made me tougher, and I really learned a lot from Ray.
“He might score and tell me how to defend him to make me better.”
Bradley also noted that Brandon Bass, who’s widely regarded as the Celtics hardest worker, learned much of his work ethic from watching Allen.
“It was amazing. Brandon does the same thing and I think he got it from Ray," Bradley said. "Not only him, but all of those guys I played with. But Ray was unique. That’s why he is who he is because he definitely put in the work.”
Bradley sees the Spurs’ current vets having the same impact on their own teammates as well.
“They start a certain culture, I guess you could call it, in terms of how they prepare and how they work," Bradley said of the Spurs. "Even the younger guys; I played with (Spurs guard) Cory Joseph in college. You can tell he’s picked up how they prepare for the game.”
There’s plenty for coaches to glean from when it comes to Gregg Popvich, a five-time NBA champion and three-time NBA Coach of the Year. Brad Stevens said he had an opportunity to pick Pop’s brain recently, and while he only asked for a brief amount of time, the Spurs coach was very generous with advice and input.
“He’s been really nice to me. We’ve talked before a couple of the games,” Stevens said. “I asked if I could spend 15 minutes with him before the (NBA) Coaches meetings in September and an hour later, I was biting my tongue and I had to let him go, it wasn’t fair to him. I just let him talk the whole time.”
Prodded by reporters for more details on their exchanges, Stevens dove in more about what he’s learned from Popovich.
“We talked mostly technical stuff, but he’s just a really good coach. An hour wouldn’t do him justice. Maybe 10 books, or a full year of tutoring is the way to do it,” Stevens said. “He’s got a great pulse on his players, he understands how to get the most out of every single person on the team. He (has established) a great culture. He clearly is terrific at what he does.”
After hearing Stevens’ reply, a San Antonio reporter laughed, telling him that Popovich would reply to similar questions with, “None of your business.”
The Gregg Popvich School of Media Relations is apparently coming in the next session.