HOLDING COURT WITH ... NBA VETERAN DAVID LEE

David Lee has what most NBA players do not:  an NBA Championship ring. The two-time NBA All-Star/ 11 year veteran is wearing a Spurs uniform this season, following a five-year stint with the Knicks out of the University of Florida, and another five with the Warriors, and last season split between the Celtics and the Mavs.  Before a recent game against the Magic, Lee talked about life with the Spurs.

It's been a great transition. Obviously you know when you come to the Spurs it's going to be about chasing a championship and being part of a great tradition ... and playing for a coach like Gregg Popovich, who has a great history of winning.  It's absolutely lived up to every aspect of that.

What is it about Pop that has most impressed you?

Just the overall attitude. He’s very disciplined about what he expects of everyone’s role. There’s no question who's in charge here. He’s the one who tells the players what he wants them to do and he expects a lot out of his players. And I think that is why the team is so efficient and so organized, because the commands come from one place and players know what is expected of them.

It is often said that the NBA is a “player’s league.”  Is that less so in the case of the Spurs? 

I would say that as peole he does let us be who we are. As players he does give us freedom, but I think he is very specific in wanting guys to play to their strengths. And they're big on players that they bring here fitting into this system.

How is it different and how is it the same as your experience with the Warriors during their championship season? 

Completely different makeup of guys.  In both cases great group of guys and great group of winners, but just a totally different vibe.  In Golden State we would listen to music before the game and it was a looser vibe and a younger team. The guys were more outgoing.  Whereas here the team is an older group of veterans and more reserved guys – more quiet guys on the team personality-wise.  It has really been interesting for me to be in two situations with unbelievable people involved and winning teams in both cases but which seem to do things in very different ways, so it’s been really cool to see how that works.

When you’re on a team like the Spurs or the Warriors, is there pressure that anything less than a championship is a disappointing season?

Well I wouldn’t say that that’s the way you look at it, but going into the season that’s definitely the goal. There are a few teams in the league that legitimately think they have a chance at the championship – we’re one of them, Golden State’s one of them – and that’s our goal.  And sure, if you fall short of your goal you’re disappointed. A million things can happen during the course of a season. But that’s the goal going into the season.

Do championship teams do anything different in practice or in how they are organized than other teams?

Not that I’ve noticed.  I think a big part of it is just that you’ve got to have the talent. But I think the hardest thing to do in the NBA is to be consistent. Bringing it every single game for 82 games is not the easiest thing to do. There are always days you are going to be sore and tired. It’s the teams that overall have a good group spirit together and bring it more times than not – and then you add in the talent factor – and I think that’s what makes a winning team in this league. 

What does a player call on during games when you aren't bringing it 100%?

For me it’s just being grateful that I’m in the league and part of my game is to try to bring that energy every single night. I think that we’ve got a group of guys on this team that subscribe to that same thinking. You know what also helps is when the chemistry is the way it is in this locker room.  When somebody’s not having their best day, having teammates around them to pick them up and to encourage them. That always helps.  I know I’ve had times when I was having a kind of slow day and someone next to me is having a good day and says something to me and gets me going. 

If you were to have a conversation with your younger self when you were just coming into the league, what do you know now that you would share?

I think more than anything as a veteran I have just learned to not put so much pressure on myself. I think most young guys – and maybe some veterans, too – every time you have a good game you think you’re on top of the world and can’t be beat, and every time you don’t have your best game or you’re 1 for 7 from the field, you think the world’s over. Now that I’m in my 12^th year, you learn that life goes on, and the key is how you bounce back from a tough game. And that everybody – whether you’re LeBron James or the 12^th guy on the bench – has tough shooting nights and it’s a matter of just being as consistent as you can.

With the Warriors being your primary rival in the Western Conference, what do you think the Spurs need to do to prevail?

We had a good outing against them last time. They’re very talented. I think the key is to keep their most dangerous shooters from having big games.  When they have big games they are tough to beat.  So we need to guard the defensively, come in with a great game plan, and stick to it.

Is defense a larger part of the picture in this club than in some others you have played for?

It’s something we talk about endlessly here.  It’s something that’s very important on any good team in this league. Just like in everything else, Coach Popovich is very specific in what he expects in the coverages.  Scouting report stuff is very detailed. And then it’s a matter of going out and taking care of it.

For veteran players such as yourself, what is the place of continued improvement and growth as a player at this stage in your career?

For me it’s first about finding a good situation to be in, like what I have this year with this team. Other than that I have found that the biggest change for me is how important being in shape is.  You saw with Tim Duncan towards the end of his career he played at a lighter playing weight and that helped to keep him healthier. Something that has been important to me is really being in good shape has made my body feel better and given me more energy. so that is something I continue to work on in the off-season so that I can come into the new season in as good a shape as possible.  Obviously I continue to work on the skill stuff and work on my weaknesses. But for me being in good shape is at a premium because it’s not as easy to get back shape when you’re out of shape when you’re 33 vs. 25.

Have you had much chance to interact with Tim this season? And what have you learned from him?

Quite a bit actually.  Well I learned a lot from playing against him. The guy’s very, very tough to play against. He doesn’t try to force his way in terms of giving you information. But I think more than anything he comes in and helps out with practice and he’s just so selfless.  He will rebound for you – and I’m not sure there are too many Hall of Famers with their jerseys in the rafters who are willing to come in and rebound for guys on the team a year after they retired. He’s a really special human being above being one of the best basketball players to ever play to play the game - so it’s pretty cool.

You said you learned a lot just playing against him?  What did you learn?

Well for one thing just his consistency. And his level of fundamentals. He’s a guy that it just seemed that the harder you played against him the more difficult it was. He had a counter for anything that anybody threw at him and was so skilled and so level headed.  He just really thought the game and had as high a basketball I.Q. as anybody I ever played against. I give him credit for that.

If you factor out sheer athleticism, what would you say are the three most important qualities that the successful big men possess?

I think there’s a high premium put on guys who can rebound. That takes skill and I.Q. And there’s probably a bigger premium – especially with 4's – on being able to shoot the three. And also being able to make decisions with the ball, handle it a little bit, pass the ball.

Post Script
   When David Lee signed with the Spurs before the start of the season, he passed up on other, better paying offers, to play for a coach he had long admired, since playing for "Pop" on the West team in the 2013 All Star game. 
   During the 2013-14 season, Lee scored a game-high 32 points along with 13 rebounds in a 104-102 loss to the Spurs, before helping the Warriors defeat the Spurs in an OT rematch, where he scored 25 points and brought down 22 rebounds.

   When Lee was asked to take a back seat to Draymond Green on the Warriors' 2014-15 championship team, the four-time NBA Player of the Week continued to be a fan favorite, and the way he accepted a more limited role earned him accolades from Warriors' head coach Steve Kerr.

Towards the end of the offseason in 2010, after Lee had been signed by the Warriors, Marcus Thompson of bayareanews.com wrote the following:
   "Lee also ... doesn't forget the support staff around his team. He was (at home) when the trade to the Warriors was announced, but before he could come to the Bay Area to be introduced, he went back to New York. A security guard at Madison Square Garden had died, and Lee went to his funeral, making sure his former Knicks teammates were represented."

Earlier that same year, while Lee was still with the Knicks, award-winning New York Times sports columnist George Vecsey wrote of Lee's attending the funeral of his own gradnfather, a successful St. Louis businessman:
   "As an officer during World War II, (Mr. Lee) had tried to improve the way blacks were treated in the service. At the funeral, (David) watched busloads of former employees arrive from out in the countryside, recalling how (his grandfather) treated the janitor the same nice way he treated the plant manager."