Team USA head coach Gregg Popovich wants to make sure that Patty Mills won't be able to show off his skills when the Americans face the Australian national basketball team, the Boomers next weekend.
As per Peter Mitchell of 7news.com.au, Popovich said that he plans to make sure that Mills eats a lot before the two exhibition games take place on August 22 and 24.
“I'm going to take him out to eat. I'm going to fill him up and try to make him fat so he can't move around so quickly.”
Of course, everyone knows that this is a joke from Pop, who's one of the most entertaining persons on the mic.
Still, the Boomers are expected to rely heavily on Mills' scoring and playmaking skills, as supposed-to-be starting point guard Ben Simmons already withdrew his commitments from the national team. However, things will not be easy for Mills because Popovich has been coaching him as a member of the San Antonio Spurs since 2012.
The exhibition games between Team USA and the Boomers are part of their preparations for the FIBA World Cup, which is set to take place in China from August 31-September 15, 2019.
All jokes aside, Popovich praised Team USA players for their commitment, and he's optimistic that they can still win dominate the FIBA Worlds even if they also had players who backed out to focus on the upcoming NBA season.
“First of all they sacrificed their time, they are all committed, they want to do this, they're really attentive and their work ethic is absolutely wonderful.”
So expect Pop and Team USA to treat every game seriously, exhibition or not.
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