Gregg Popovich Will No Longer Coach Spurs

According to Shams Charania of ESPN, Gregg Popovich will no longer coach the San Antonio Spurs. 

Popovich is transitioning to a full-time role as the Spurs’ president of basketball operations. The basketball legend suffered a mild stroke in November. 

“Popovich has been involved throughout the Spurs’ offseason and will continue to be a vital member of the franchise’s day-to-day operations, sources said,” Charania wrote. “Popovich has even been present in the Spurs’ facility in recent days, and as much as he wanted to return to his place on the sidelines, he came to the conclusion that he no longer could move forward with the taxing grind of being an NBA head coach, sources said. He has been making steady progress with his health in recovery from the November stroke, sources added.”

Popovich guided the Spurs to titles in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2014. He has coached some of the top players in NBA history such as David Robinson, Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Kawhi Leonard. 

Popovich was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame last year. He’s a three-time NBA Coach of the Year (2002-03, 2011-12, 2013-14) and led Team USA to a gold medal at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo in 2021.

The Spurs went 34-48 this season. They missed the playoffs for the sixth straight year, but they have a bright future with Victor Wembanyama and De’Aaron Fox leading the way.