Stephen Jackson has been very vocal over the past couple of days, discussing a potential NBA comeback while also looking back on his 14-year NBA career. He won his first and only NBA championship in 2003 with the San Antonio Spurs, and played with the Spurs once again from 2011 to 2013. Jackson was a crucial role player for the Spurs throughout playoff runs, helping them win games on their way to continued dominance throughout the Western Conference Finals. In 2012, the Spurs faced the Thunder and eventually lost in 6 games, Stephen Jackson, knows the reason his team lost that series, Tony Parker. The Spurs had gone up 2-0 in the series and the Thunder won 3 games in a row to tip momentum into their favour.
With the series in the balance, Jackson claims Parker went for individual stats rather than winning the game and heading to the Finals. Per the Express News (ESPN):
“When I had good games, when I was playing well, I felt like Tony was the guy to really go against me, to go behind my back to Pop to play (Manu) Ginobili, to play other guys because he wanted the credit. […] I’m going to give you a perfect example. We was up 2-0 against the Thunder, my last year with the Spurs in (2012). They came back and won three games straight. But game six in OKC, I was having a hell of a game. I had six threes. Me and Kawhi (Leonard) was playing well.
“At the end of the game, when my six threes and other guys shots got us back in the game, Tony came in the game and tried to save the day and stopped playing team ball. We ended up losing that series. I kind of felt like that while he was on the sidelines, he was over there saying sneaky stuff to players and the coaches about getting back in the game so he can try to get his own personal achievements in the game and that’s why we lost.
“(Gregg Popovich) wouldn’t say that. But I remember right after the game, me, Kawhi and Tim (Duncan) were sitting down after we lost, he came over there and said ‘I should have rode you guys, You all did everything you could.’ That’s his way of saying I should not have put Tony in the game.”
It’s rare to see Coach Popovich make an error in judgement like that, and it’s hard to believe Parker was sneaking his way onto the court, but putting Tony Parker into the game is never a bad call. Sometimes the game just doesn’t go the way you want it to.
