Gregg Popovich Earns Deep Respect from Ex-Spurs Star

One of the most disappointing storylines during the 2024-25 NBA season was the health and absence of long-time San Antonio Spurs legend Gregg Popovich. The five-time championship head coach suffered a stroke earlier in the campaign and remained away from the game for a lengthy period. It was only recently that Popovich announced his permanent departure from the head coaching ranks in San Antonio. It was a touching moment during one of his final press conferences where two of his long-time players, Manu Ginobili and Tim Duncan, stood beside him as he spoke as if they were his guardian angels standing watch. Coach Pop’s impact and influence on his players have long been a consistent element of his leadership and coaching. It’s an aspect of Popovich that even former players, such as DeMar DeRozan, experienced and remain grateful of to this day.

Gregg Popovich Earns Deep Respect from Ex-Spurs Star

Former San Antonio Spurs star DeMar DeRozan credits Gregg Popovich with ‘unique basketball approach’

DeRozan’s trade from the Toronto Raptors was a shock to him. Swapping places with Kawhi Leonard was tough on DeRozan’s mental health, something he has publicly spoken about in recent years. While DeRozan didn’t experience much winning or playoff success under Popovich, it would seem that the impact from coach to player extended well beyond the court. 

DeRozan recently spoke on the “Run Your Race” podcast about Popovich’s coaching approach, and what about it made DeRozan fully buy into the Hall of Fame coach’s words.

“His approach with me wasn’t basketball. It was the humility that he brought with being a coach that he established right away. That made me feel like, ‘I would run through a wall for this motherf****r,” DeRozan shared. ““I remember our first shootarounds. The man said, ‘We going to do this, DeMar’s the point guard.’ I was like, ‘What you mean? I’m no f*****g point guard. What you mean I’m the point guard?’ Later down the line I figured out why he did that was to challenge me on understanding how to make everybody else around me better. I was always caught up in thinking of being a scorer. He had me understand, like, three and a half quarters, dominate, making your teammates better. Last six minutes of the game…all you. It became so easy and so fun getting everybody else involved. It made the game a lot easier for me,”

Coach Pop’s impact was always greater than the game itself

Popovich is famous for showing the utmost belief and confidence in his players. Of course, that was evident long before DeRozan arrived. One of Popovich’s most famous lines was that he was grateful that Tim Duncan allowed him to coach him. It didn’t matter if the player was a journeyman or a superstar, as Duncan was; Popovich coached equally. He wanted the absolute best out of everyone equally.