All it takes is one question, and Hubie Brown will take it from there.

Brown will provide insight. He’ll give background with perspective. Just ask one question, short or long, sit back, and listen.

The latest example: Brown, the legendary NBA head coach turned ESPN analyst, previewed the recent game he called between the Spurs and Golden State Warriors. In providing insight, Brown explained why he felt the Spurs would have defeated the Warriors in the conference finals last season. It was about their strategy.

“People forget that whole situation,” Brown recalled. “(The Spurs are) up 23-25 (points). (Kawhi Leonard) he’s got 23-25. He’s guarding (Kevin) Durant — Durant is already 2-for-9. (The Warriors) are in shambles because you’re killing them off the dribble from the top of the circle down. So, (Pau) Gasol and (LaMarcus) Aldridge could play high-low off the dribble from the top of the circle down. So, Gasol could play high-low opposite the ball, or they could play double-low, and with the clock down, Leonard would beat them off the dribble, whoever was guarding. They would bring a big man to him, and boom, they’d make the play, and everything was great.”

Today, the outcome of that series is in the NBA history books. Leonard went down with an ankle injury, would miss the rest of the series and the Warriors swept the Spurs.

“It (Leonard’s injury) was such a sad thing that happened,” said Brown, “and they were still playing without Tony Parker. When that happened, no Tony Parker and no Leonard, you had nobody that could beat them off the dribble with the clock down inside of five to seven seconds. … It changed the whole series.”

In this week’s Off Topic, Brown goes in-depth to discuss the Spurs, why the team has been successful this season without key players, his respect for Manu Ginobili and what he likes about Davis Bertans.

I feel like you described how a team like the Spurs could beat the Warriors in a seven-game series.

See, when you play them, you’ve got to stop the tempo. You’ve got to stop them from transition … by making them take the ball out of bounds — field goals, foul shots, second chance opportunities. If you can do those three things, now you’re playing San Antonio tempo because you will score against them. Now, if you have your entire team intact, you would have a 3-point game. You will have people off the dribble that could create on ball reversal after everything that you use, and your high-low, double-low power game stuff would be great. When you have all of your guys, you are a catch-and-shoot 3-point team. You take Leonard out of there, Rudy Gay out of there, and all of a sudden you don’t have Tony Parker at 100 percent breaking the defense down off the dribble. Now you have (Dejounte) Murray. All of a sudden now, when you kick out, you have a couple of guys who are not catch and shoot 3-point shooters. They have to put the ball on the floor. If you sit back and look at that, you’ll see that and say, “You know what, they don’t have to rotate as far now because (the Warriors) will give you that shot.” And that’s what I think you see with the present starting lineup that you have. You have guys who will make the catch, they’re open but need the one bounce or two bounces and all of a sudden, the defense is right there.

What has surprised you so far about the way the Spurs have been able to compete, sitting third in the conference without critical players?

I mean, anybody that covers the league and has to talk about the league, this is a tribute to the coaching staff and then to the present players who accept playing Spurs basketball. And that is unselfish chemistry and accountability. That sounds easy, but you go around the league, you have about five teams … fall under that category. The Spurs do it every damn year. You and I both know if you don’t accept that, you’re not there the next year. You know that. I know that. So, (players) understand when they go there, especially when they go there as free agents. They understand how things are going to be and you have to fit. … Right now, they are developing a lot of young people, and they’re still third in the West. There are other teams trying to develop young people, and what’s happening? They are under .500. They have no prayer of making the playoffs.

Manu Ginobili is 40 and still producing at a high level. Richard Jefferson pointed out how Ginobili’s body is allowing him to do this because he’s taken such good care of himself. What do you appreciate about a guy like Ginobili, who is still able to play like he has this season?

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, in 1972, when I was an assistant coach, he wins the MVP for the (second) time in four years out of college. He was doing yoga before anybody in sports even knew how yoga works. And Kareem always swam in the ocean in the summertime every day. Karl Malone used a parachute and ran the mountains in Utah. Why am I giving you these two guys? Because they are one and two in scoring and because you look at their attendance. That’s how I always gauge players. I always look at attendance first. The great ones are always there because their bodies are conditioned by them in the offseason, and then they continue to keep it at a high level and they can play until their late 30s and even into their 40s and still give you, maybe not the greatest production that they can give you at the beginning of their careers, but a solid production. That’s what Ginobili gives you. They are unique. When you think about Ginobili’s career, starting in Argentina, MVPs in Italy before he came (to San Antonio). And then what he has done there, accepting the role of coming off the bench when you’re the MVP of the Olympics. A lot of guys wouldn’t do that. That’s why a coach like myself, the respect I feel for him is at the highest of the highest level. But all of these guys that do that are at a high level away from basketball taking care of their bodies in whichever avenue that they do. … That’s why I’m happy Ginobili (came) back because he means not only a lot to San Antonio, he means a lot to the coaching profession, guys that have played with him throughout the years, and the utmost respect that he gets from the opposition, it’s beautiful.

Another guy aging well in this league is Pau Gasol. You coached him in Memphis. Gasol doesn’t put up the numbers that he used to, but there are nights when he’s highly effective. Are you impressed with what he’s still able to provide?

What you’re dealing with is a cerebral person. He not only has a high athletic IQ, but he has a very high academic IQ. And then the fact he has size, without great jumping ability, he’s always been able to give the 20-something points, and then you would see the 10-11-12 rebounds. But most of all, you would see the two to three shot blocks. And then the passing ability. So, when you coach him, for all those years before he got up in age, he not only contributed from the scoring point, but the cerebral thing that whatever you were running, he could make everything run through the post or high post or whatever you’re running because of his incredible ability to make the passes and make the plays for other guys. He overcame the lack of great foot quickness, a lot of great jumping ability. And his brother (Marc) plays almost the same way when you look at it. But Pau is a special person. I have the utmost respect for him, his brother and his family. I’m so glad my wife and I had the chance to be with them for three years.

Lately, Davis Bertans has started a few games over Gasol. What do you like about Bertans?

Well, I think it was the bonus in the trade for (George) Hill. It was the unknown diamond in the rough that you got in Leonard. You might have thought (Leonard) was going to be a good pick up, but you never thought (the trade) would be what it became. But then you also got another little jewel with this young guy who has an incredible talent for a kid 6-foot-10. The athleticism, the ability to shoot the 3. He’s going to get better and better with minutes and confidence. Look, Pop has been high on him since Day 1. We always talk about him every game that I do where he’ll say something about Bertans. The coaching staff loves him. I’m just hoping — you know it’s the old story about life: You can have a lot of talent. They open the door, and they give you the opportunity to step through the door. Now can you do it? Can you produce at what level they think and that they are predicting for you? Can you handle the pressure of delivering 75 out of 82 nights when they put you in the starting position? Can you deliver? And we’ll see.

When arriving at arenas, are you still surprised when you walk through the door before games and see Popovich there? You coached a long time, and Popovich just turned 69 and is still going strong. Are you surprised he’s still doing it at a high level?

No, I’m not surprised because Pop was a late bloomer starting out as a coach. Coming out of the service and doing the commitment out of the Air Force. And then starting out at the lowest level, and working your way up in that small college in California. And then being discovered by the guys that gave him a chance to come into the pros. And then he was a great assistant coach who could add a lot to your staff. And then once he became the head of the operations there, he had his ideas of what he wanted that franchise to be. When he stepped into that position, to not only be managing and a coach, he was accepting a lot of pressure of delivering. And I mean delivering to the next level. We’re not delivering from a bad team to a good team. We’re delivering to the next level that we have in this business. His worldly IQ. His incredible organization. Style of play. His philosophy of how to play the game. Come on now, the Spurs are the only team holding guys under 100 (points). He’s going to do it for 20 years in a row if it stays around 98. (The Spurs) style of offense is still team oriented. It believes in movement, forcing the defense to play you 50-feet wide. You don’t do your job on defense, you lose your minutes. He never talks about offense first. He talks about defense and whether you can be an anchor. So, from a coaching standpoint, a television guy looking at him, I’m just happy because he sets such a high bar for other coaches that come into this league who don’t remember 20 years ago. His bar is still there and he’s not stepping down half an inch. With the Spurs, as you know, it’s all about accountability. That’s who he is. And the biggest thing is, I’m happy he’s in good health because when you go back and check all the games that they have had to play outside the regular season, add those up and you’re going to see the extra years that he has coached above and beyond other people in the business who made the playoffs occasionally. The ability to keep your team fresh. The ability to be able to take your guys, year after year, deep into the playoffs and to championships and still have them come back with that same enthusiasm. And then, the ability to answer whatever he asks of them. I’m just so happy for him because his motor is still looking good. He’s getting up there except for one thing: he still has the passion.