Spurs’ Chris Paul sends fiery message after fifth straight defeat

A 114-110 loss to the Chicago Bulls continued the course San Antonio Spurs I would like to finish. They have lost five games since before Christmas. Every one of them reduced to the last minutes or extra time. After Tuesday’s loss in the Windy City, Chris PaulThe frustration showed right from the first response in his postgame media session.

“Sooner or later we’re going to get tired of it,” the future Hall of Famer said of another tough loss.

“We just have to figure out how to win these games because we’re working too hard, playing too hard and giving ourselves an opportunity night after night to find a way to win these games,” Paul continued.

Spurs have won three games in this stretch, two of them by comfortable margins. That didn’t seem to matter to the point guard after the setback in which they blew a 19-point lead for a sub-.500 team.

The Spurs have struggled in recent close games

On Dec. 23, San Antonio headed to Philadelphia riding a two-game winning streak. In a sign of things to come, the Spurs lost a lead late in the fourth quarter and lost to the 76ers 111-106.

“It’s happened in a couple of games,” Paul said Monday.

On Christmas Day, the Silver and Black let go of a seven-point lead in the final period of a 117-114 outcome against the New York Knicks. Four nights later, they led the Minnesota Timberwolves with less than six minutes left in a game they lost 112-110.

“Win and learn at the same time, that’s the best way to do it,” Paul said when asked if the losses were part of the learning curve. “Like I said before, there’s no time like the present.” It’s not guaranteed that everyone will be here next year.”

Following a big win at the Denver Nuggets January 3, The Spurs missed a chance the next night to take two straight from one of the best in the Western Conference.

“That’s it.” That’s what we talk about all the time. We have to understand where we get that courage from – where we impose our will,” said the 20-year veteran. “We have a group of very good guys, but to win these games, it’s just a different mentality, a switch that we have to find and we have to turn where we get into these situations that other teams know what to expect, myself included.” I have to figure out how to continue to get better defensively.”

Paul didn’t shy away from pointing the finger at himself afterwards absent against the Bulls in the contest that immediately followed Jan. 4 overtime loss to Denver.

“Again, we have to look at it and figure out what I could have done better, probably give us better shots. It’s hard.”

The 39-year-old’s proposal? He called the Spurs’ Hall of Fame coach. Although Paul didn’t know it at the time.

“Make sure we have the appropriate fear is what I’ve heard from coaches before. Go into these games with confidence, but have the appropriate fear regardless of the other team’s record.”

When told that “appropriate fear” is the term Gregg Popovich, who came out with a mild stroke suffered in early November, the first-year Spur understood the connection to former San Antonio player and assistant coach Monty Williams whom he reported to while with the Phoenix Suns.

“I played for Monty, who also came from that tree.

Although not part of his coaching tree, Paul is now under Popovich’s umbrella. Like his head coach from afar, the 12-time All-Star is looking for a solution. Gathering his young teammates could be a start.