It’s said a playoff series doesn’t start until the road team wins.

So, Utah Jazz, your playoff series against the San Antonio Spurs has begun.

And, Utah Jazz, your playoff series is about to be over against the San Antonio Spurs.

The Spurs, the No. 1 seed in the NBA’s Western Conference, are up 3-0 on the Jazz after Saturday’s 102-90 victory. Spurs guard Tony Parker had a game-high 27 points.

The potential closeout Game 4 is Monday in Salt Lake City again. No team down 3-0 has ever come back to win the series.

No first-round upset of the Spurs this time. Last year’s loss to the No. 8 Memphis Grizzlies is seared into the Spurs’ memory.

If anything defines the Spurs under Coach of the Year Gregg Popovich, it’s taking nothing for granted. No better example came right at the end of the first half.

With 3.4 seconds left, after Utah failed to run down the clock and score, San Antonio’s Manu Ginobili ran through the Jazz and set up Matt Bonner in the corner for a three-pointer that sailed through the basket and gave the Spurs a 52-50 halftime lead. It was Bonner’s only points of the half.

The Jazz had reason to be hopeful even after dropping the first two games in San Antonio. They had the seventh best home record in the NBA, fifth best in the West. They had won 13 of the last 15 home games to close out the regular season.

But in the third quarter, San Antonio pulled away. All 11 Spurs who had played had scored by that time. Entering the fourth quarter, San Antonio had outscored Utah 36-16 on points in the paint.

“We’ve got to be aggressive, get physical with these guys. We can’t afford to let them go where they want to go,” was Utah coach Ty Corbin’s assessment of the defensive improvement needed in the final quarter.

But it didn’t happen. Just one minute, 20 seconds into the fourth, Corbin called a timeout after a 6-0 Spurs’ run gave San Antonio an 81-68 lead.

The Spurs will be on a mission to end the series Monday and join the Oklahoma City Thunder in taking a break after a sweep. Rest for the Big Three — Ginobili, Tony Parker, Tim Duncan— is a bonus … as if they need more help.

Copyright 2012 USA TODAY

SALT LAKE CITY — Tony Parker scored 27 points and Tim Duncan added 17 as the San Antonio Spurs took a commanding 3-0 series advantage over the Utah Jazz with a 102-90 victory Saturday night at EnergySolutions Arena.

Devin Harris and Al Jefferson each had 21 points for Utah. The Jazz will need to make history in order to advance as no team in NBA playoff history has ever overcome a 3-0 deficit.

Game 4 is Monday night in Salt Lake City. Game 5, if necessary, would be Wednesday in San Antonio.

Utah held its last lead, at 58-56, on a pair of free throws by Devin Harris with 8:51 to go in the third quarter. San Antonio responded by building a lead that swelled to 10 points before the period was complete.

The Spurs were never seriously tested down the stretch as the Jazz drew no closer than five in the fourth quarter.

Matt Bonner hit a 3-pointer as time expired to give San Antonio a 52-50 halftime lead. Duncan and Parker led the Spurs with 13 and 11 points, respectively, at the break. Harris topped the Jazz with 14 and Jefferson added 11.

Utah held a 24-16 rebounding advantage at halftime, but 8-of-16 shooting from the foul line proved costly in a half featuring 10 lead changes and five ties.

Although the Jazz trailed 6-0 early after Duncan made two baskets and a pair of free throws, they managed to erase much of the deficit quickly. A 3-pointer by Harris and a jumper from Gordon Hayward cut the Spurs’ lead to 6-5 less than two minutes into the contest.

San Antonio remained in front early on until Harris made a second 3-pointer. The shot gave Utah a 23-22 advantage with 2:21 remaining in the opening quarter, giving the Jazz their first lead in the series since a 13-12 edge in Game 1.

By quarter’s end, though, the veteran Spurs held a 30-28 lead.

And down the stretch in the second half, they proved to be too tough for the young Jazz.

SAN ANTONIO – Tony Parker shooed away the NBA coach of the year. The San Antonio Spurs were ahead 36 points and he didn’t want Gregg Popovich to end his night just yet.

“To stay in shape,” Parker said.

That’s how bad it got for the Utah Jazz. It was the third quarter of a playoff game, and Parker by then was practically treating it as a workout.

Pummeling the Jazz in a fashion not seen since Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls humiliated them in the 1998 NBA Finals, San Antonio handed Utah its second-worst playoff loss, winning 114-83 Wednesday night to take 2-0 lead in the first-round series.

Parker scored 18 points, while Popovich could practically put the Spurs on autopilot after a 20-0 run in the second quarter. Jazz center Al Jefferson summing up how this shiner felt.

“Embarrassing,” he said.

The only bigger embarrassment for the Jazz in the playoffs was that 42-point loss to Jordan’s Bulls in 1998.

Game 3 is Saturday night in Salt Lake City.

It’s the first time the Spurs have led a series 2-0 since opening the 2008 playoffs against Phoenix. San Antonio won that series in five, and unless the Jazz can shake this off, this one will be over just as quick.

“I can’t explain it. I couldn’t explain it the other night,” Jazz forward Paul Millsap said. “They came out and just whipped us.”

SAN ANTONIO — Tony Parker shooed away the NBA coach of the year. The San Antonio Spurs were ahead 36 points and he didn’t want Gregg Popovich to end his night just yet.

“To stay in shape,” Parker said.

That’s how bad it got for the Utah Jazz. It was the third quarter of a playoff game, and Parker by then was practically treating it as just another workout.

Pummeling the Jazz in a fashion not seen since Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls humiliated them in the 1998 NBA Finals, San Antonio handed Utah its second-worst playoff loss, winning 114-83 on Wednesday night to take 2-0 lead in the first-round series.

Parker scored 18 points, while Popovich — a day after receiving the NBA’s highest coaching honor — could practically put the Spurs on autopilot after a 20-0 run in the second quarter. Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin had admitted to being unusually jittery before losing Game 1, but this time, it was center Al Jefferson summing up how this shiner felt.

“Embarrassing,” he said.

The only bigger embarrassment for the Jazz in the playoffs was that 42-point loss to Jordan’s Bulls in 1998.

Game 3 is Saturday night in Salt Lake City.

It’s the first time the Spurs have led a series 2-0 since opening the 2008 playoffs against Phoenix. San Antonio won that series in five, and unless the Jazz can shake this off, this one will be over just as quick.

If not sooner.

“I can’t explain it. I couldn’t explain it the other night,” Jazz forward Paul Millsap said. “They came out and just whipped us.”

It was a total collapse by the Jazz in spite of flying back to Salt Lake City after Game 1 and regrouping with two days of practice back home. There they had talked about adjustments and maybe giving Parker “a hard foul or two” to get him thinking twice about driving, but Parker didn’t seem to have a dent on him before taking the entire fourth quarter off.

Jefferson and Millsap weren’t any more imposing on offense than they were defensively. Jefferson scored 10 points, and Millsap had nine.

Popovich chalked the blowout more to the Jazz having a bad night — they shot 23 percent in the first half — than the Spurs dominating. Parker played 28 minutes and Popovich said the decision on when to take his star out was a struggle between keeping him in condition and not risking injury.

“He wanted to get the whole quarter, but we compromised and got two more minutes,” Popovich said. “He’s been special for us all year, obviously. We got to keep him ready to go.”

The Spurs held the Jazz scoreless for nearly 7 minutes in the second quarter while rookie Kawhi Leonard and unheralded swingman Danny Green outplayed the Jazz’s stars. The Jazz filed off the court at halftime walking slow, heads down and quiet after being as close as 31-26 minutes earlier.

Jefferson and Josh Howard, who also had 10 points, were Utah’s leading scorers.

It was the most lopsided postseason win for the Spurs since beating the Nuggets by 28 in 2005. San Antonio’s playoff record is a 40-point victory over Denver in 1983.

“You don’t expect to win a playoff game like that,” Green said. “They’re a very good team, but they didn’t shoot it as well as they liked. They didn’t shoot it as well as they did, and we shot the ball pretty well. Stuff like that happens.”

The Spurs have won 12 in a row, a season high after surrendering two 11-game winning streaks this season by not playing Parker, Duncan and Manu Ginobili.

Duncan finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Leonard scored 17 points, and Green had 13.

At least the Jazz didn’t look the most embarrassed the entire night. Popovich again had to show off his coach of the year trophy before the game, this time for fans while standing between Duncan and Spurs great David Robinson. Popovich obliged for several seconds before scrambling to hand the trophy off to one of his assistants as fast as possible.

Notes: The last Jazz team to rally from an 0-2 deficit and win a playoff series was 2007, when Utah came back to beat Houston in the first round. The Spurs later beat that team on their way to their fourth championship. … Backup Spurs C Tiago Splitter (sprained wrist) was available to play but the rout gave Popovich the luxury of letting the big man continue to heal. Popovich said Splitter should be better by Game 3.

NBA
Spurs 114, Jazz 83: Tony Parker scored 18 points and host San Antonio handed Utah its second-worst playoff loss in franchise history to take a 2-0 lead in the first-round series.

NBA Coach of the Year Gregg Popovich practically put the Spurs on autopilot after a 20-0 run in the second quarter that stunned the Jazz, who had vowed to play better after the Spurs easily won Game 1. But this humiliating rout was even easier.

The Jazz never quite greeted Parker with the hard fouls the All-Star was supposed to have coming, and the Utah frontcourt of Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap wasn’t any more imposing on offense. Jefferson scored 10 points, and Millsap had 9.

Game 3 is Saturday night in Salt Lake City.

The only bigger embarrassment for the Jazz in the playoffs was a 42-point loss to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls in the 1998 NBA Finals.

It’s the first time the Spurs have led a series by 2-0 since opening the 2008 playoffs against Phoenix. San Antonio won that series in five, and unless the Jazz can shake this off, this one will be over just as quick — if not sooner.

“We were aggressive and we wanted to make sure we matched their energy,” Parker said.

It was a total collapse by the Jazz in spite of flying back to Salt Lake City and regrouping with two days of practice after losing the opener Sunday. Back home, Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin admitted feeling unusually nervous before that Game 1, but said before tipoff this time that those jitters were under control.

By the second quarter, Corbin appeared to be wrestling with disgust.

That’s when the Spurs held the Jazz scoreless for more than seven minutes while rookie Kawhi Leonard and unheralded swingman Danny Green outplayed the Jazz’s stars. Utah shot 5 of 28 in the second quarter and the Jazz filed off the court at halftime walking slowly, heads down and quiet.

At least the Jazz didn’t look the most embarrassed the entire night. Popovich again had to show off his Coach of the Year trophy before the game, this time for fans while standing between Duncan and Spurs great David Robinson. Popovich obliged for several seconds before scrambling to hand the trophy off to one of his assistants as fast as possible.

Pacers 97, Magic 74: Danny Granger had 26 points and nine rebounds, Roy Hibbert added 18 points and 10 rebounds, and visiting Indiana beat Orlando to a take a 2-1 lead in the first-round series.

The Pacers regained home-court advantage with the victory, riding good shooting early and building a 29-point lead in the fourth quarter.

They also dominated scoring underneath thanks to a 46-33 rebounding edge and have outscored the Magic 81-43 in the third quarter in the series.

Glen Davis led the Magic with 22 points, and J.J. Redick added 13. The Magic never led, struggled to get any scoring in the paint, and made a series-low five 3-pointers.

Indiana coach Frank Vogel’s implored the Pacers after each of the first two games to make better shot selections.

They finally did it in Game 3.

It translated into their best shooting of the series as the Pacers built a 23-point lead in the third quarter and led, 76-55, entering the fourth.

Indiana had its way both inside and out, shooting 47 percent for the game (37 for 79) and holding a 42-22 edge on points in the paint.

Meanwhile, aside from Davis, Orlando’s offense stalled at several points and the Magic connected on only 30 of their 71 attempts from the field.

SAN ANTONIO - 

Tony Parker scored 18 points and dished out nine assists as the San Antonio Spurs earned a dominant 114-83 victory over the Utah Jazz in Game 2 of this Western Conference quarterfinal.

Tim Duncan added 12 points and 13 rebounds, while Kawhi Leonard netted 17 points on 6-of-7 shooting for San Antonio, which took a 2-0 lead in the series.

“I thought we moved the ball great and our shooters were making shots,” said Parker. “Defensively, I thought we did a good job controlling the boards.”

Game 3 of the best-of-seven series will be on Saturday in Utah.

Josh Howard and Al Jefferson scored 10 points apiece to lead the Jazz, who shot just 34.4 percent in the game, including a 1-for-6 mark from three-point range.

“We have been great at home and we need to continue that,” Jazz head coach Tyrone Corbin said. “They’re going to come in a try and jump us early. We have to try and prepare for that.”

San Antonio controlled the game from the start, opening the game with a 10-2 run as Utah failed to make a shot from the floor until Jefferson’s driving layup snapped the offensive drought.

The Spurs, though, responded with seven straight points to jump out to a 17-4 lead near the midpoint of the first quarter.

A late 7-2 push by the Jazz closed their deficit to seven before San Antonio closed out the first with a pair of layups by DeJuan Blair and Gary Neal to carry a 28-17 advantage into the second.

After Neal started the second with a shot from beyond the arc to give the Spurs a 14-point cushion, Utah reeled off a 9-0 spurt to get within 31-26.

Jamaal Tinsley then stole a Danny Green pass and fed the ball to a streaking DeMarre Carroll for a chance to make it a one-possession game, but Carroll was whistled for a charge and Green connected on a three-pointer on the other end to put an end to the run.

The remainder of the half belonged to San Antonio, as they used a 22-2 swing over the final 6 1/2 minutes of the second quarter to hold a 53-28 lead at the break.

Utah was held to just 23.4 percent shooting over the first 24 minutes while also turning the ball over nine times, resulting in 14 San Antonio points.

“In the first half they were aggressive and playing hard. They just weren’t shooting the ball really good,” Parker said about Utah.

The Spurs cruised through the second half as Parker netted 10 points and San Antonio pulled ahead by as much as 36 on Boris Diaw’s layup late in the third quarter en route to an 87-53 lead entering the fourth.

Both teams then emptied their benches in the fourth quarter to run out the clock as the Spurs maintained at least a 31-point lead for the remainder of the game.

“With a team like [San Antonio], obviously, you have to score as well as defend and we can’t have games like this,” Jazz guard Devin Harris said.

Game Notes

Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich received his second career Coach of the Year award prior to the game…San Antonio center Tiago Splitter missed the game with a sprained left wrist he suffered in Game 1 of the series…The Spurs shot 57.3 percent in the game and made 10-of-22 shots from beyond the arc…Derrick Favors, Paul Millsap and Alec Burks each scored nine points for the Jazz…Green dropped in 13 points, while Diaw and Neal finished with 11 apiece for San Antonio.

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Read more: Not even close: Utah Jazz get hammered and humiliated in San Antonio

Since their loss on Sunday, the Utah Jazz spoke about making adjustments in their second game vs. the San Antonio Spurs. Suffice it to say, the young Jazz will be back to the drawing board once again after the Spurs administered a 114-83 drubbing that left Utah down 0-2 in their first round series.

Balanced Brilliance: San Antonio head coach Gregg Popovich, freshly anointed this year’s NBA Coach of the Year, coaxed excellent performances out of his entire roster. Ten Spurs played between 14 and 28 minutes, while eight players tallied between 10 and 18 points. Surprisingly, Manu Ginobili was not one of those eight individuals.

Every San Antonio player who saw the court, with the exception of notorious Jazz killer Matt Bonner, scored and had at least one assist.

Conversely, the Utah Jazz players were balanced in their shortcomings. Ten of the 12 Jazzmen who played shot less than 50 percent on their shots. Only two players put double-digit points on the board.

Bombs Away: San Antonio was the best 3-point shooting team in the regular season, so their 10-22 performance from long distance was par for the course. They made them early and helped doom the Jazz by the end of the first half. Spurs swingmen Danny Green (3-5) and Kawhi Leonard (3-4) led the barrage, hitting many wide open looks.

Utah, on the other hand, was a paltry 1-6 (16.7 percent), with the lone make not coming until the game’s waning moments.

Numbers Don’t Lie: Every team will suffer a demoralizing defeat and this was the epitome of a blowout. In addition to the aforementioned, these glaring statistics will help tell the rest of the story:

• Utah had almost as many turnovers (15) as assists (16). Meanwhile, the Spurs dished out 28 dimes compared to just 12 miscues.
• San Antonio won the first three quarters by 11, 14 and nine points, respectively.
• Every Spur starter had a plus/minus of at least +31, with midseason signee Boris Diaw sporting a sparkling +41 mark. As could be expected, their Jazz starting counterparts were all at least -31.
• San Antonio’s opening five shot a combined 27-41 (65.9 percent), while the Jazz starters managed just 17-52 (32.7 percent).
• The Spurs won the rebounding (44-43), steals (10-7) and blocked shot (5-3) battles.
• The more veteran Spurs outperformed the youthful Utah squad in fast break points, 29-18.

Luckily for the Utah Jazz, all these numbers culminate in just one loss. The two teams will be back at it Saturday evening in the EnergySolutions Arena.

David Smith provides instant analysis for Deseret News’ Utah Jazz coverage. He works for LDS Philanthropies and also blogs for the Utah Jazz 360 website. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter at davidjsmith1232.

SAN ANTONIO (AP)

Tony Parker shooed away the NBA coach of the year. The San Antonio Spurs were ahead 36 points and he didn’t want Gregg Popovich to end his night just yet.

”To stay in shape,” Parker said.

That’s how bad it got for the Utah Jazz. It was the third quarter of a playoff game, and Parker by then was practically treating it as just another workout.

Pummeling the Jazz in a fashion not seen since Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls humiliated them in the 1998 NBA Finals, San Antonio handed Utah its second-worst playoff loss, winning 114-83 on Wednesday night to take 2-0 lead in the first-round series.

Parker scored 18 points, while Popovich – a day after receiving the NBA’s highest coaching honor – could practically put the Spurs on autopilot after a 20-0 run in the second quarter. Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin had admitted to being unusually jittery before losing Game 1, but this time, it was center Al Jefferson summing up how this shiner felt.

”Embarrassing,” he said.

The only bigger embarrassment for the Jazz in the playoffs was that 42-point loss to Jordan’s Bulls in 1998.

Game 3 is Saturday night in Salt Lake City.

It’s the first time the Spurs have led a series 2-0 since opening the 2008 playoffs against Phoenix. San Antonio won that series in five, and unless the Jazz can shake this off, this one will be over just as quick.

If not sooner.

”I can’t explain it. I couldn’t explain it the other night,” Jazz forward Paul Millsap said. ”They came out and just whipped us.”

It was a total collapse by the Jazz in spite of flying back to Salt Lake City after Game 1 and regrouping with two days of practice back home. There they had talked about adjustments and maybe giving Parker ”a hard foul or two” to get him thinking twice about driving, but Parker didn’t seem to have a dent on him before taking the entire fourth quarter off.

Jefferson and Millsap weren’t any more imposing on offense than they were defensively. Jefferson scored 10 points, and Millsap had nine.

Popovich chalked the blowout more to the Jazz having a bad night – they shot 23 percent in the first half – than the Spurs dominating. Parker played 28 minutes and Popovich said the decision on when to take his star out was a struggle between keeping him in condition and not risking injury.

”He wanted to get the whole quarter, but we compromised and got two more minutes,” Popovich said. ”He’s been special for us all year, obviously. We got to keep him ready to go.”

The Spurs held the Jazz scoreless for nearly 7 minutes in the second quarter while rookie Kawhi Leonard and unheralded swingman Danny Green outplayed the Jazz’s stars. The Jazz filed off the court at halftime walking slow, heads down and quiet after being as close as 31-26 minutes earlier.

Jefferson and Josh Howard, who also had 10 points, were Utah’s leading scorers.

It was the most lopsided postseason win for the Spurs since beating the Nuggets by 28 in 2005. San Antonio’s playoff record is a 40-point victory over Denver in 1983.

”You don’t expect to win a playoff game like that,” Green said. ”They’re a very good team, but they didn’t shoot it as well as they liked. They didn’t shoot it as well as they did, and we shot the ball pretty well. Stuff like that happens.”

The Spurs have won 12 in a row, a season high after surrendering two 11-game winning streaks this season by not playing Parker, Duncan and Manu Ginobili.

Duncan finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Leonard scored 17 points, and Green had 13.

At least the Jazz didn’t look the most embarrassed the entire night. Popovich again had to show off his coach of the year trophy before the game, this time for fans while standing between Duncan and Spurs great David Robinson. Popovich obliged for several seconds before scrambling to hand the trophy off to one of his assistants as fast as possible.

Notes: The last Jazz team to rally from an 0-2 deficit and win a playoff series was 2007, when Utah came back to beat Houston in the first round. The Spurs later beat that team on their way to their fourth championship. … Backup Spurs C Tiago Splitter (sprained wrist) was available to play but the rout gave Popovich the luxury of letting the big man continue to heal. Popovich said Splitter should be better by Game 3.

SAN ANTONIO — Game 4 of the 1998 NBA Finals has a 21st century rival for worst game in Utah Jazz playoff history.

The Jazz were hounded, hammered and humiliated by the San Antonio Spurs — and that was just the first half at the AT&T Center.

When the final buzzer finally blared its merciful sound, the Jazz were on the extremely short end of a 114-83 rout in Game 2. The Spurs will take a 2-0 series lead into Utah for Game 3 on Saturday.

Utah fell behind quickly, missing its first seven shots en route to an early 17-4 deficit.

It got better for the Jazz momentarily — but then it got much, much, MUCH worse.

Derrick Favors and Paul Millsap led a temporary charge as the Jazz cut the Spurs’ lead to five at 31-26.

In order, Favors and then the Jazz were taken out of the game.

After Favors exited and Al Jefferson entered, San Antonio went on a massive 20-0 run, hitting four 3-pointers and simply blowing the Jazz out of the building.

Remember the Alamo?

More like, forget the AT&T Center.

Things didn’t get any better in the second half. The Spurs outscored Utah 34-25 in the third quarter, adding another bucket of salt to this open wound.

It wasn’t the Big Three that doomed Utah, either.

Early on, when it mattered most, it was the Tiny Two of Danny Green (13 first-half points) and Kawhi Leonard (12 of his 17 in the opening half) who did the most early damage.

Seven Spurs ended up in double figures, led by Tony Parker’s 18 points and nine assists.

Utah shot 23.4 percent from the field through the first two quarters and finished with still-dismal 34.4 percent shooting.

Only two Jazz players hit double figures — Josh Howard and Big Al with 10 points apiece.

The Jazz scored 17 points in the first quarter and just 11 in the second.

And about that 1998 Finals game? The Jazz were blown out of that championship series game 14 years ago, 96-54.

Perhaps giving Jazz fans some hope, Utah did play better in Game 4 (losing by four) and actually won Game 5 in Chicago.

EMAIL: [email protected]

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SAN ANTONIO — Gregg Popovich can’t win like the old days. No longer can the San Antonio Spurs simply feed Tim Duncan the ball, let their defense do the rest and ride that game plan to NBA championships.

But the new way Popovich has them winning isn’t bad, either.

That acknowledgment came Tuesday when Popovich was honored as the NBA’s Coach of the Year after leading San Antonio to 50 wins and the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. The Spurs defied naysayers who have written them off as too old since their last title in 2007 and did so in a lockout-shortened season that tested every coach when it came to managing minutes and finding practice time.

“If you can draft David Robinson and follow that up with Tim Duncan, that’s a couple of decades of very, very possible success unless you just screw it up,” Popovich said. “So it’s hard to take credit when circumstances have gone your way so consistently.”

Popovich also won the award in 2003 when San Antonio won its second of four championships, and he might be headed for a fifth ring if the Spurs keep this up. They’re doing it partly thanks to a supporting cast of rookies and former NBA no-names that Popovich has turned into a surprise frontrunner.

He whipped them into winners quickly. After a bumpy 12-9 start, the Spurs lost just seven more games the rest of the season.

“Pop has done a terrific job molding a mix of experience and inexperience,” Spurs general manager R.C. Buford said.

Popovich received 77 first-place votes. Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau was second (27), Indiana coach Frank Vogel was third (7) and Memphis coach Lionel Hollins was fourth (6). Boston’s Doc Rivers and Denver’s George Karl each received a vote.

The Spurs practiced Tuesday before the NBA made the afternoon announcement. All-Star Tony Parker, who might be having the most complete season of his career, later tweeted congratulations to the only NBA coach he’s ever known.

Not that Popovich, one of the NBA’s most famously mercurial and colorful coaches for 16 seasons, is likely to be found on social media.

“Well deserved!!!” Parker wrote.

The season loomed as one of Popovich’s toughest projects yet. Besides Duncan, 36, and Manu Ginobili, 34, growing another year older, the Spurs started the year with much of the same roster that fell in the first round to the up-and-coming Grizzlies last spring.

But Popovich, who is also team president, looked in unlikely places to keep San Antonio’s championship window from shutting. Although he typically keeps rookies on a short leash, Popovich put forward Kawhi Leonard in the starting lineup by midseason and has kept him there for the playoffs. Swingman Danny Green, who the Spurs have previously cut multiple times, found his way into the starting lineup and emerged as a surprise offensive spark.

Popovich also steered the Spurs through what has typically been a death knell for them in recent years: injuries to their Big Three. Ginobili missed nearly half the season after breaking his hand, yet San Antonio still kept winning without their playmaking guard.

Popovich was aggressive as ever in keeping his stars healthy. He willingly surrendered 11-game winning streaks twice by playing without Duncan, Parker and Ginobili to avoid wear and tear. When he didn’t play them in Portland, a disgruntled fan chided Popovich in a letter for denying his family the chance to see three of the NBA’s biggest stars in person.

Popovich wrote the fan back. He understood, “but I have a different priority, a different responsibility. That rules for me.”

Duncan has said that kind of decision-making has made this Popovich’s best coaching season yet.

Popovich deflected the praise.

“Timmy just wants to get minutes,” Popovich said. “He’s just trying to ingratiate himself.”

Popovich has a record of 847-399 since 1996, making him the league’s longest tenured coach with the same team. He is one of only five coaches with four or more NBA championships, joining Pat Riley, Phil Jackson, John Kundla and Red Auerbach, whom the Coach of the Year award is named after.

Thibodeau was last year’s winner and made a case to repeat. The Bulls tied the Spurs with an NBA-best 50 wins even with reigning MVP Derrick Rose hampered by injuries all season.

Republic vote

Suns beat writer Paul Coro was a voter in the NBA Coach of the Year balloting. Here is his vote:

1. Frank Vogel, Pacers

2. Tom Thibodeau, Bulls

3. Lionel Hollins, Grizzlies

The NBA announced Tuesday (May 1) that San Antonio head coach Gregg Popovich has been named the 2011-12 NBA Coach Of The Year, earning the second Red Auerbach Trophy of his career.

The 63-year-old coach, who previously won the honor during the 2002-03 season, totaled 467 points — including 77 first-place votes, from a panel of 119 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the U.S. and and Canada — to beat out second place, Tom Thibodeau of the Chicago Bulls.

Coaches were awarded five points for each first-place vote, three points for each second-place vote and one point for each third-place vote.

He deserved it too. Nobody expected the aging Spurs to make such an impact this season, but they finished with the best record in the Western Conference (50-16), and tying for the best record in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls.

Popovich guided the team to its 15th consecutive postseason berth, which is the longest active streak in the NBA.

They also ranked second in the league in scoring (103.7 ppg) and point-differential (+7.2). However, in the second half of the season, the Spurs were the league’s most dominant team, posting an NBA-best 26-6 (.813) record while averaging league highs in scoring (108.3 ppg) and point-differential (+10.8). They even finished the season 10 straight games, 24 of their last 27, and 38 of their last 45.

And… they won at least 50 games for the 13th consecutive season, led by Popovich the entire way. That surpasses the Los Angeles Lakers (1979-80 to 1990-91) for the longest streak in NBA history.

Behind Popovich was the Bulls’ Tom Thibodeau, and then the Indiana Pacers’ Frank Vogel.

Only Pat Riley and Don Nelson have more Coach Of The Year honors with three a piece.

SAN ANTONIO (AP) – The San Antonio Spurs have locked up another No. 1 seed.

Now comes trying not to blow it again.

Tim Duncan scored 18 points in what might have been his last game before the playoffs start this weekend, now that the Spurs have clinched the top spot in the Western Conference after beating the Portland Trail Blazers 124-89 on Monday night.

The Spurs won their eighth straight but won’t care about the streak or little else with two now-meaningless regular season games left. All that will matter is their Big Three reaching the postseason fully healthy for the first time since 2008, and that likely means an easy week ahead for Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili.

“It’s great to be in that situation, but as we showed last year, someone can sneak up and take you out easily,” Duncan said. “Hopefully we get a much better effort this year and do a much better job this year, and we stay away from those injuries.”

After cruising to the No. 1 spot last season against all expectations, the Spurs bowed out as just the fourth top seed to lose in the first round. This latest one — their sixth top seed in the Duncan era — is somehow even more surprising. Two days before Duncan turns 36, the NBA’s standard-bearers beat out the young Oklahoma City Thunder for ultimate home-court advantage.

Wesley Matthews had 24 points for the Trail Blazers, who lost their sixth straight and have one game left in a tumultuous season in which the franchise effectively hit the reset button.

J.J. Hickson had 14 points and 10 rebounds for Portland. Raymond Felton scored 13 points and Jonny Flynn had 10 on a night when the injury-depleted Trail Blazers again only used nine players.

“If we knew we were going into the playoffs, of course we’re going to keep playing,” Matthews said. “But now, short-handed, nine players — I’m never going to say I’m looking forward to not playing basketball. But the season’s winding down for us and we got one more left.”

San Antonio could also know its first-round opponent as early as Tuesday. That’s when Phoenix plays at Utah in a game that could decide the No. 8 seed.

Danny Green also had 18 points for the Spurs, while Parker scored 13 and Stephen Jackson and Gary Neal both added 12.

Neal left in the fourth quarter clutching his shoulder after colliding with Portland’s Kurt Thomas. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said X-rays were negative and called it a stinger.

Duncan wouldn’t predict how Popovich would set his lineup the rest of the week to prevent any other scares.

“Obviously, we don’t want to do to go into a game somebody get hurt from some silly play,” Duncan said.

Portland is skidding toward a merciful end of its first season out of the playoffs in four years. Their losing streak is at a season high and interim coach Kaleb Canales — who grew up two hours south in the border city of Laredo — was humiliated in his homecoming.

“It was a great challenge for us coming in, playing a team that had a lot to play for tonight. We’re getting thrown into the fire and we just didn’t respond on the defensive end of the floor,” Canales said.

It was the Trail Blazers’ most lopsided defeat since Canales took over in March after Nate McMillan was fired. Before the game Canales, the NBA’s first Mexican-American coach, played down the emotion of being home with a caravan of friends and family watching in the stands.

Not to mention working down the bench from the coach who taught him basketball basics as a kid.

Canales is 33. Popovich, when he was an assistant under then-Spurs coach Larry Brown in the late 1980s, would join other Spurs coaches and players on promotional bus tours along the Texas border to drum up interest. Popovich still recalls one of the youngsters at a stop outside a Laredo grocery store.

“I taught him all he knows as far as dribbling skills are concerned in the parking lot at the H-E-B,” Popovich said.

Notes: The 35-point win tied for San Antonio’s biggest blowout this season. …Canales said he cold-called Spurs general manager R.C. Buford while trying to get his break in the NBA. Buford had nothing for him, but Canales said he was nice enough to call back.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

SAN ANTONIO — The San Antonio Spurs have locked up another No. 1 seed.

Now comes trying not to blow it again.

Tim Duncan scored 18 points in what might have been his last game before the playoffs start this weekend, now that the Spurs have clinched the top spot in the Western Conference after beating the Portland Trail Blazers 124-89 on Monday night.

The Spurs won their eighth straight but won’t care about the streak or little else with two now-meaningless regular season games left. All that will matter is their Big Three reaching the post-season fully healthy for the first time since 2008, and that likely means an easy week ahead for Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili.

“It’s great to be in that situation, but as we showed last year, someone can sneak up and take you out easily,” Duncan said. “Hopefully we get a much better effort this year and do a much better job this year, and we stay away from those injuries.”

After cruising to the No. 1 spot last season against all expectations, the Spurs bowed out as just the fourth top seed to lose in the first round. This latest one — their sixth top seed in the Duncan era — is somehow even more surprising. Two days before Duncan turns 36, the NBA’s standard-bearers beat out the young Oklahoma City Thunder for ultimate home-court advantage.

Wesley Matthews had 24 points for the Trail Blazers, who lost their sixth straight and have one game left in a tumultuous season in which the franchise effectively hit the reset button.

J.J. Hickson had 14 points and 10 rebounds for Portland. Raymond Felton scored 13 points and Jonny Flynn had 10 on a night when the injury-depleted Trail Blazers again only used nine players.

“If we knew we were going into the playoffs, of course we’re going to keep playing,” Matthews said. “But now, short-handed, nine players — I’m never going to say I’m looking forward to not playing basketball. But the season’s winding down for us and we got one more left.”

San Antonio could also know its first-round opponent as early as Tuesday. That’s when Phoenix plays at Utah in a game that could decide the No. 8 seed.

Danny Green also had 18 points for the Spurs, while Parker scored 13 and Stephen Jackson and Gary Neal both added 12.

Neal left in the fourth quarter clutching his shoulder after colliding with Portland’s Kurt Thomas. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said X-rays were negative and called it a stinger.

Duncan wouldn’t predict how Popovich would set his lineup the rest of the week to prevent any other scares.

“Obviously, we don’t want to do to go into a game somebody get hurt from some silly play,” Duncan said.

Portland is skidding toward a merciful end of its first season out of the playoffs in four years. Their losing streak is at a season high and interim coach Kaleb Canales — who grew up two hours south in the border city of Laredo — was humiliated in his homecoming.

“It was a great challenge for us coming in, playing a team that had a lot to play for tonight. We’re getting thrown into the fire and we just didn’t respond on the defensive end of the floor,” Canales said.

It was the Trail Blazers’ most lopsided defeat since Canales took over in March after Nate McMillan was fired. Before the game Canales, the NBA’s first Mexican-American coach, played down the emotion of being home with a caravan of friends and family watching in the stands.

Not to mention working down the bench from the coach who taught him basketball basics as a kid.

Canales is 33. Popovich, when he was an assistant under then-Spurs coach Larry Brown in the late 1980s, would join other Spurs coaches and players on promotional bus tours along the Texas border to drum up interest. Popovich still recalls one of the youngsters at a stop outside a Laredo grocery store.

“I taught him all he knows as far as dribbling skills are concerned in the parking lot at the H-E-B,” Popovich said.

Notes: The 35-point win tied for San Antonio’s biggest blowout this season. …Canales said he cold-called Spurs general manager R.C. Buford while trying to get his break in the NBA. Buford had nothing for him, but Canales said he was nice enough to call back.