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Popovich on opener: 'You get your rings, you get beat by 30, you go get a glass of wine'

Murad Sezer / Reuters

San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich has some very measured expectations as his squad gets set to begin its NBA title defense on Tuesday night.

Anyone expecting a bit of a championship hangover - especially on a night the Spurs will receive their 2014 NBA Championship rings and play without NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard and center Tiago Splitter - well, they're in the same camp as the reigning Coach of the Year.

"It's the first game of the season," Popovich said Tuesday. "You get your rings, you get beat by 30, you go get a glass of wine."

That doesn't sound like the worst way to start a season, even if it's not a particularly productive one. And hey, Boris Diaw is game for the last part, for sure.

The Spurs actually enter the game as 3.5-point favorites at home against the Dallas Mavericks, so a 30-point loss would be surprising in reality. Don't say Popovich didn't warn you, though.

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