Current:Home > ContactGet well, Pop. The Spurs are in great hands until your return -Prime Capital Blueprint
Get well, Pop. The Spurs are in great hands until your return
View
Date:2025-04-16 02:52:45
First, get well Pop.
We can’t wait to see you back on the sideline doing what you enjoy doing and doing what we enjoy watching you do: coach the San Antonio Spurs.
Gregg Popovich had a mild stroke before the Spurs’ game against Minnesota on Nov. 2, the team said in a news release Wednesday.
The team said Popovich has “already started a rehabilitation program (and) is expected to make a full recovery. At this point, a timeline for his return to the sidelines has not been determined.”
Take your time Pop. We want to see you back but only when doctors say you can and when you’re up for it.
The Spurs, the NBA and the game will be there when you’re ready to return. Heck, there will even be a sideline reporter relishing the opportunity to ask you a between-quarter, on-court question.
There are probably just a handful of organizations equipped to manage the absence of a Hall of Fame coach and the Spurs are one of them because of investment in continuity and stability from the franchise, starting at the top.
MORE:What is best start in NBA history? Five teams ahead of Cavaliers' 12-0 record
MORE:Pistons' Tim Hardaway Jr. leaves in wheelchair after banging head on court
The Holt family has held majority ownership of the team for nearly three decades. Spurs Sports and Entertainment CEO RC Buford joined the franchise in 1988, left in 1992 and returned in 1994 and has been there since in a variety of front-office roles. That’s 34 years.
Buford and Popovich, now in his 29th season as head coach and the NBA’s all-time winningest coach, have created a model that other franchises try to emulate.
Assistant coach Brett Brown, who first joined the Spurs in 1998 and is now in his second stint, and 15th season, has been part of four championship teams. Assistant coach Mitch Johnson, who is serving as acting coach in Popovich’s absence, is in his ninth season with San Antonio. General manager Brian Wright is also in his ninth season. Dave Telep is in his 12th season with San Antonio, now serving as vice president of basketball operations. And director of collegiate scouting George Felton has been with the Spurs since 2006.
It goes on. Head trainer Will Sevening was hired in 1998 and team physician David R. Schmidt has been with the Spurs for 32 seasons.
They would have even more long-serving basketball staffers but the Spurs do such a good job that their employees are hired by other teams.
That’s not to say the Spurs won’t miss Pop during his absence – they will in multiple ways including his famous team dinners – but the engine will run with minimal trouble.
The Spurs have a plan for the team and for individual players, and the staffers that have been around Popovich for so long will be able to carry out those plans. It won’t be the same as hearing it from Popovich, but the players, including second-year star Victor Wembanyama, know the messages originate from Popovich.
And it’s a solid hunch that Popovich will be watching and probably even sending messages to players and coaches.
So, get well Pop. We look forward to your return but we will do it patiently.
Follow Jeff Zillgitt on social media @JeffZillgitt
veryGood! (31424)
Related
- Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
- Love Is Blind Star Chelsea Blackwell Shares Her Weight-Loss Journey
- Justice Department announces nearly $80 million to help communities fight violent crime
- Zoe Saldaña and Husband Marco Perego Use This Code Word for Sex at Home
- Small twin
- Sarah Paulson Shares Her Take on the Nepo Baby Debate
- Free blue checks are back for some accounts on Elon Musk’s X. Not everyone is happy about it
- How brown rats crawled off ships and conquered North American cities
- Pregnant Kylie Kelce Shares Hilarious Question Her Daughter Asked Jason Kelce Amid Rising Fame
- Man charged with killing 3 relatives is returned to Pennsylvania custody
Ranking
- The FTC says 'gamified' online job scams by WhatsApp and text on the rise. What to know.
- World Central Kitchen names American Jacob Flickinger as victim of Israeli airstrike in Gaza
- As Biden Pushes For Clean Factories, a New ‘How-To’ Guide Offers a Path Forward
- 2024 NBA Playoffs: Bracket, standings, latest playoff picture as playoffs near
- 2 killed, 3 injured in shooting at makeshift club in Houston
- Governor says budgetary cap would limit his immediate response to natural disasters in Kentucky
- Why does the Facebook app look different? Meta rolling out new, fullscreen video player
- Lawsuit challenges Alabama restrictions on absentee ballot help
Recommendation
Meet the volunteers risking their lives to deliver Christmas gifts to children in Haiti
Courageous K-9 killed while protecting officer from MS-13 gang members during Virginia prison attack, officials say
UConn women back in Final Four. How many national championships have the Huskies won?
Snag This $199 Above Ground Pool for Just $88 & Achieve the Summer of Your Dreams
Jamie Foxx reps say actor was hit in face by a glass at birthday dinner, needed stitches
Cicada-geddon insect invasion will be biggest bug emergence in centuries
'Reacher' star Alan Ritchson reveals sexual assault by 'famous' photographer: 'Left some scars'
Avalanche kills American teenager and 2 other people near Swiss resort