The Spurs coaching icon passes Don Nelson for No. 1 on the league's all-time list.
Winds gusts were up to 35 mph, and temperatures generally dipped into the 40s in balmy Orlando.
Inside the Amway Center, reporters kept asking: "Where's Coach Pop?"
Greg Popovich became the NBA's all-time champ on Friday after San Antonio's 104-102 comeback victory over the Utah Jazz, but on a cold night on February 10, 2016, no one seemed to be able to locate the man. .
Unsurprisingly, they omitted pre-game media availability.
So, when the doors to the visitor's locker room finally opened, you could see assistants whispering about who might be coach in Popovich's absence, placed right outside the entrance.
This is the last place Popovich wanted to be.
No one understood why San Antonio's 98–96 win over Orlando was going well.
Holding a tissue in one hand, wet face, red eyes and still teary-eyed, Popovich reluctantly walked slowly to the sparse media team after coaching the game.
"I would like to talk about basketball," he said. "Personal stuff is none of your business."
About 1,300 miles away, Monty Williams' wife, Ingrid, had died hours before from injuries sustained in a head-on car accident in Oklahoma City. So, inside arguably the quietest winning locker room ever, Popovich stood motionless, staring into space, while Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge interviewed his locker. Pop eventually made eye contact with Tim Duncan, and the two would share a private, sad moment. Heart-wrenching and heart-wrenching, the scene showed a deep glimpse of the humanity and love displayed daily by the NBA's all-time winning coach, who through selflessness and caring for others won victory after victory on the court.
Spurs CEO R.C. Buford told NBA.com.
Williams played three seasons for Popovich in the '90s - including being the first to coach - before later serving as an intern coach and vice president of basketball operations for the Spurs.
Popovich wanted nothing more than to be with Williams that night, comforting his friend during this sad time.
Now the head coach of the Phoenix Suns, Williams discussed what the Spurs culture meant to him, and how the time spent with Popovich shaped his own approach.
"In the '90s, it was, 'Get yourself off the mont.' That's what [Spurs culture] meant to me," Williams said with a laugh. "But it's a lot more: selfless, egoless basketball, serving your partner, shutting your tail, having a broader perspective that's bigger than basketball and the understanding that we have to work, and that we have to do the stuff we do." are a basketball perspective. But we also have to take care of each other, take care of those we don't have and be able to share it with those who are less fortunate. That culture was high school for me The outside of the U.S. probably mattered more than any culture in my life. When I think of Spurs culture the first thing that comes to mind is "selfless." I could sit here and think about it for a long time Could talk, what Pop means to my life; that and R.C. [Buford]."
Boston Celtics coach Ime Udoka spent three years as a player with Popovich and seven years as an assistant in San Antonio, and shares a similar view.
"He always emphasized the connection to it, and you saw that with his relationship with Tony [Parker], Tim [Duncan] and Manu [Ginobili]. I understand that piece and what it does for your team, Udoka said. "You take it your own way. It was not about X and O. That's how you connect with your people."
For five NBA championships over the course of 26 seasons and over 2,000 regular season games, a total of 191 players contributed to Popovich reaching this latest milestone, and he has touched them all in some way.
We all know about the victories won by players like Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, David Robinson, Sean Elliott and Kawhi Leonard. But we don't know about the contributions made by people like 1993 Heisman Trophy winner Charlie Ward (who played 24 in Popovich's win), Brooklyn Nets general manager Sean Marks (34 wins), Warriors coach Steve Kerr (152 wins) Forgets. Grizzlies assistant Blake Ahern (two wins).
Raise your hand if you know of the San Antonio careers of Gaylon Nickerson, Ira Nubble, or Mengke Bator.
"Pop, he doesn't like praise," Spurs All-Star point guard DeJonte Murray said during the All-Star weekend. "It's a good thing, but you also want to remind him of his success. It's rare. He's the kind of guy who wants to focus on improving the team every day. He's never anything to praise for. Lata. We don't talk about [the all-time win record] but we sure do enjoy it when we get to [the record] for him because he deserves it. He's a great guy. He's got his all Pushes the players, whether you're the first man or the last man, G League guys. If you get a 10-day contract, he's been hugging you from day one."
Former Spurs players can confirm that tough love is often accompanied by a warm welcome. A first-time All-Star in 2022, Murray admits that playing for Popovich "is not easy, and it's not for everyone," adding that "you have to be mentally tough" to grow under the coach. .
“He is a great man. Obviously, he is a great coach, and it speaks for itself in what he was able to do on and off the floor for this game,” said Murray. For he is the father type."
Meanwhile, Williams played 154 games for Popovich from 1995–97, and recalls feeling dumbfounded at the idea of the coach yelling mercilessly at him during practice, only to be invited to dinner later. To call to deliver.
"I wasn't used to it, and then I realized how much he cared about me as a person," Williams said. "It really helped me grow, not just as a basketball player. But it also gave me a chance to see the world from a different perspective. I think as a young basketball player, I'm always looking for the next contract, minutes. Was looking at it. He inspired me to look at it in a different way."
Most of the players who worked hard under Popovich over the years share similar stories.
His loyalty to Coach runs as deep as there really is a method to the madness.
Popovich explained in December, "We all try to set standards, there are demands, and each one of us needs to be the one who is." "I'm kind of more volatile or I can show my feelings in a practice, shootaround, or halftime conversation with the team. But if that team knows you're doing it because you want them to get better, And they know you love them, so it works. Hands around Monty and sticking to him in practice, both have to be there, or we won't be as close as we are today."
Buford, now 61, has witnessed this since his first meeting with Popovich during the 1985–1986 season. Then an assistant to Larry Brown's staff at the University of Kansas, Buford noticed something special within five minutes of meeting Popovich.
Popovich joined Brown's staff as an unpaid assistant after taking an academic sabbatical from Division III Pomona-Pitzer. Popovich began his sabbatical by going to the University of North Carolina to study one of college basketball's most successful coaches, Dean Smith. Popovich ended it with a tenure in Kansas.
Brown later brought on four Jayhawks assistants – Buford, Popovich, Alvin Gentry, and Ed Manning – in 1988, when San Antonio hired him as head coach coming out of a college national championship.
In those days in Kansas, Popovich often slept in Buford's spare bedroom.
"We didn't know who this guy was," Buford told NBA.com. "Five minutes into being around him, no matter where that coach was, you knew this guy was unique. Part of that people have always been. [Over the years] with the credibility that comes with victories, he His stature has blown up. But the people, the relationship aspect, [they] are the things that are deeper. He can make people work hard because he does so much to make sure they know it's always the team. And raising their game and their game is secondary to them helping to raise who those people are."
Often, Popovich found ways to accomplish both in a single instance.
San Antonio's heartbreaking Game 6 loss to Miami in the 2013 NBA Finals serves as the supreme example. What Buford still calls my final memory of "who he is, his resilience, and his care for the team" after one of the franchise's most underrated moments.
Going into that game, the Spurs thought they were either celebrating at the team dinner afterwards or preparing for Game 7.
An iconic Ray Allen corner 3-pointer that sent Game 6 into overtime ensured the latter.
After that emotional loss, Popovich conducted his usual postgame interview. Then, he rode in a private car to beat out the rest of the team for dinner after the game at Miami's Il Gabiano restaurant.
"He went straight to the restaurant and just set up the whole place," Buford explained.
This meant working with the restaurant to rearrange the tables (it's almost a science for Popovich), and each coming through the door one by one when the team bus arrived, before ordering food and wine. Greeting the player
Parker recalled that no one in the restaurant said a word for at least an hour.
Before that Popovich began to work his magic.
"He made sure people sat together, made sure they weren't pouting," Buford said. “There were families that came, and he just went from table to table, rubbed shoulders, and steered everyone in the right direction. It was just a great display of team culture. We came back out, and we played well in Game 7, we did really better in Game 6. We were there, and just didn't make it. ,
Buford pointed to that dinner as the tone-setter for the Spurs' 2014 "Beautiful Game" title run.
"The way he built the team's psyche back that night, he took it to training camp the next season in Colorado Springs (at the U.S. Air Force Academy, where Popovich was a 1970 graduate)," Buford said. “It all started that night right after the game. When things get tough, when he is at his best as a leader, and he knows how to put not only himself but those around him above as well. Have to lift."
On a mission for redemption, San Antonio returned to the Finals the following season, capturing their fifth championship with a five-game demolition of the Miami Heat.
Popovich's reach extends even deeper into today's NBA head coaching ranks. A quick count points to at least 10 current head coaches with ties to Popovich or the Spurs organization.
Active people include Williams and Udoka, not to mention Charlotte's James Borrego, Denver's Michael Malone, Golden State's Kerr and Memphis's Taylor Jenkins. The current NBA champions Milwaukee are coached by Mike Budenholzer, who came to the league as a video coordinator for San Antonio in 1994, when Popovich became the general manager of the Spurs. Philadelphia's Doc Rivers played for the Spurs during Popovich's time as a GM. Utah Jazz coach Quinn Snyder served as head coach of San Antonio's G-League affiliate from 2007–2010, while Gentry, who coached Kansas staff Popovich, joined as an unpaid assistant in 1985–86.
"The thrill he gets from the success of others [is special]," Buford said. "There are a lot of coaches and people in the front office, and they've enjoyed their success as much as they've enjoyed any of theirs."
Popovich first met Malone in 2005 at the NBA Basketball Without Borders event, and the two struck an instant bond over Vine and basketball. Shortly after, Popovich recommended former Spurs assistant Mike Brown (then Cleveland head coach), who added Malone to the Cavaliers' staff.
It's important for Popovich to serve as a resource for aspiring coaches because all good luck inspires their own storied climbs.
"To this day, I really don't know what I'm doing here, to be honest with you," he said. "I'm a Division II coach at heart and was as happy as a pig in you—know what it's doing. All of a sudden, I ended up here. I know it sounds a little [trite]. In between." There's a long story in. But I think I'm very grateful to other people who are trying to forge their own path, to either offer advice, or be there and be a sounding board, that sort of thing. I enjoy it because I feel like I am indebted to it."
New Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hyman left her role as a Spurs assistant after this season to start with her new WNBA team. Through Popovich, she became the NBA's first full-time female assistant coach in 2014, when they brought her along.
"I'm especially grateful to Pop, who cared about my ability, not my gender," Hammon said. "He saw something special in me and was willing to put in the time and energy to help teach and develop a youth coach."
When LA Clippers coach Ty Lew first took over as head coach at Cleveland, Popovich was one of the first people to offer sage advice.
"I don't really want to share what, but that always [helps]," Lew said. “I think my first game was against Chicago and my second game was against San Antonio. He just pulled me over and gave me some really nice and encouraging words. It meant a lot.”
Kerr played four seasons for Popovich, in addition to working with him on the USA Basketball staff. "Pop has been my mentor for many years," Kerr said, adding what she did at the Golden State "I learned from pop."
If you look at the league's list of the 15 greatest coaches in NBA history, Popovich is joined by four coaches — Brown, Kerr, Rivers and Don Nelson — with whom he has worked in some capacity in the past.
The question now in San Antonio is, how long will Popovich continue?
The longest-serving head coach in four American major professional sports, Popovich remains squarely in the mix and "as I've ever seen him," according to Buford. It's because of the current challenge and the Spurs' opportunity to lift and impress this current youth crop, after winning 23 consecutive seasons, culminating in five titles, and three NBA Coach of the Year awards, including the gold medal at the Olympics last summer. Ended up with in Tokyo.
After missing out on 22 consecutive playoff appearances, San Antonio could be nearing its third consecutive year of missing out on the postseason. But the lack of current success did not deter Popovich in the slightest. He appears fresh from the challenge of rebuilding Spurs.
Popovich participated heavily in discussions of the team reaching the NBA trade deadline earlier this month, and according to Buford, "he's focused on building the team's future."
Ask Popovich what's in it, and he'll shoot back some repetition of a joke related to his age. He turns 73 in January, but can still display a proper defensive slide with the best of them.
The Spurs came off the All-Star break on February 22 and gathered for practice, and Popovich needed just three more wins to become the NBA's winningest coach ever. He had already taken over as the NBA's all-time leader in a combined victory on April 13, 2019, when he scored his 1,413th win.
Second-year forward Devin Wassell reported that the record "isn't something we talk about," but added, "We're going to get that record for him."
Fourth Year Guard Lonnie Walker IV smiled, wondering what the moment might mean.
“I think it is [a] huge moment for the NBA. He is in my opinion the greatest coach of all time,” Walker said. “To be able to be part of such a huge achievement, it is exciting . We are trying our best. In every single game we're trying to go [with the mindset], 'Let's get this win for Pop.' Coach Pop is a little different. He is one of the most submissive friends, and he doesn't want all the recognition. But he deserves it. Pop is like Coach's Michael Jordan. His name resonates without you even knowing who he is. ,