Sources: Popovich not expected to return to Spurs this season
San Antonio Spurs Hall of Fame coach Gregg Popovich is not expected to return this season, and his NBA future is uncertain as he recovers from a stroke suffered in November, league sources told ESPN’s Shams Charania on Saturday.
The latest development provides some closure during what has turned into a difficult season for San Antonio, which Thursday announced plans to shut down franchise superstar Victor Wembanyama after he was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder.
“It is wild to think of the circumstances and the situations that we’ve been through as a team this year,” Spurs point guard Chris Paul said after Wembanyama’s latest medical setback. “But I think you guys know when situations happen in your family, that, somehow, someway brings you closer.”
Popovich is the NBA’s winningest coach with 1,390 regular-season victories and another 170 in the postseason to go with five championships. On Nov. 2, he suffered what the team called a “mild stroke” ahead of a matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
San Antonio moved assistant Mitch Johnson into the head-coaching role on an interim basis, and he’s posted a 21-27 record in leading the young Spurs.
Popovich, who has coached the Spurs since the 1996-97 season, turned 76 in January and potentially leaves the game as the oldest coach in NBA history. In 2020, he passed the previous record held by Hubie Brown, who was 71 when he coached his final game with the Memphis Grizzlies.
When the club first named Johnson acting head coach, it did so with plans for Popovich to eventually return. Popovich even released a statement in December thanking the community, the Spurs organization and friends for their outpouring of support.
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“No one is more excited to see me return to the bench than the talented individuals who have been leading my rehabilitation process,” Popovich said jokingly in the statement. “They’ve quickly learned that I’m less than coachable.”
Throughout his absence, Popovich, who also serves as the team’s president, has remained in contact with Johnson, as well as with Spurs players, by providing support and opinions about game plans for attacking opponents.
Johnson mentioned in January that Popovich is “giving praise and cussing me out all at the same time.”
Spurs CEO RC Buford, Popovich’s closest confidant and the architect of most of the franchise’s title teams, said in January the coach was “attacking his rehab.”
“The same resilience he’s shown over the course of our career as a coach, he’s approaching his return in his rehab in an incredibly unique way,” Buford said. “The relationships he’s had with former players and the care they’re sharing with him is amazing, and his improvement continues.”
In addition to his success in the NBA, Popovich has shined on the international stage, coaching USA Basketball in 2021 to a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics.
“It’s not one person to fill Pop’s shoes in this moment. It’s a village,” general manager Brian Wright said 11 days after Popovich’s stroke. “We’ve all bonded together. We’re all playing our roles in that part, and we’ll continue to do that. It’s what he would want.”
The “Get Up” crew argue whether it’s fair to already call the Anthony Davis trade a failure for the Mavericks. (2:25)
Basketball Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki admitted that he, like most everyone else, was shocked that the Dallas Mavericks sent Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in a blockbuster trade earlier this month.
“I think I was as shocked and surprised as anyone was. … I really couldn’t believe it,” Nowitzki told 96.7 The Ticket in Dallas on Friday of his reaction to learning of the trade.
Nowitzki also shared his thoughts while texting with Doncic shortly after the deal.
“Of course I felt a little disappointed and sad for him, you know. I think he obviously didn’t see this coming,” Nowitzki said. “So he invited me to come out to his first game in L.A., and I felt like I had to support him.
“I think he was — I mean it was reported that — he was pretty down and disappointed in how it went down, and so I wanted to be there for him, I wanted to be there for his family. … I’m sure he wanted to finish his career like I did.”
Doncic, 25, began his NBA career in 2018-19, which coincidentally was Nowitzki’s final season of his 21-year career with the Mavericks.
Nowitzki, 46, was the NBA MVP in 2006-07 and a 14-time All-Star. He averaged 20.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists across 1,522 games with Dallas.
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Gregg Popovich is not expected to return to the San Antonio Spurs this season, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
The Spurs head coach’s future is reportedly uncertain as he recovers from a stroke he suffered in November. He had been out indefinitely since then.
This is the second piece of brutal news this week for the Spurs, who are still reeling from losing franchise superstar Victor Wembanyama for the season due to deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder. San Antonio’s record currently sits at 24-30, and they have little reason to continue competing this season.
Charania also reported Popovich and Wembanyama have been in close contact during the week.
Updates on Popovich’s condition have been sporadic at best. He didn’t release a personal statement until December, and Spurs CEO R.C. Buford said last month he was “attacking” his rehab. At no point has a timetable been laid out.
At 76 years old and in his 29th season as the Spurs’ head coach, Popovich is both the oldest and longest-tenured head coach in the NBA. He is the NBA’s all-time wins leader among coaches, a five-time NBA champion, a three-time NBA Coach of the Year and was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame in 2023. He already has one of the most decorated résumés of any coach in history, but many are hoping to see if he can build another contender with Wembanyama and recent trade acquisition De’Aaron Fox.
With Popovich out, his assistant Mitch Johnson was catapulted into interim head coaching duties and has so far drawn strong reviews. At 38 years old, it’s conceivable he has established himself as Popovich’s successor whenever that’s needed, though it’s clear nothing is certain here.
Gregg Popovich not expected to return to Spurs this season, future ‘uncertain’ as he recovers from stroke
It looks like Gregg Popovich will not return to coach the Spurs this season.
ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Saturday night that Popovich, 76, will likely miss the rest of the year, with his future “uncertain.”
Popovich, San Antonio’s head coach since midway through the 1996-97 season, is still recovering from a mild stroke he suffered in November.
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Mitch Johnson has been at the helm as interim coach of the team in Popovich’s place.
This is a developing story
