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Steve Kerr Pays Respect to Spurs' Coach After Major News on Friday

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Toran Flores | Last updated May 2, 2025 9:26 PM ET

It has been a sad day on Friday after some recent news has dropped within the San Antonio Spurs' franchise.

Long-time head coach, and one of the greatest coaches in all of sports, has decided to announce his retirement from coaching in the NBA.

Gregg Popovich has announced that he will be no longer coaching the Spurs and will instead be transitioning into a full-time role as the team president of the San Antonio Spurs.

BREAKING: Gregg Popovich will no longer be Head Coach of the San Antonio Spurs and is transitioning full-time to Team President, sources told ESPN. The iconic Popovich is a Basketball Hall of Famer, the NBA’s all-time winningest coach, and led the Spurs to five championships. pic.twitter.com/mbtUtpgA4V
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) May 2, 2025

Popovich is the winningest coach in the league's history, a Hall of Famer, and led the Spurs to five championships in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2014.

He was also the longest-tenured coach in the four major North American sports leagues, now passing the torch to Pittsburgh Steelers' head coach Mike Tomlin.

Many players, head coaches, fans, and insiders have paid their respects to one of basketball's pioneers, and one of the most recent ones to do so was Golden State Warrior's head coach Steve Kerr, who has been the latest.

"I just want to say thank you to Pop and the Spurs' organization for everything... Pop is one of the most important people in my life for many reasons," Kerr told the press before their Game 6 matchup with the Rockets.

Steve Kerr played with the Spurs for four seasons from 1998-2001 and again in the 2002-2003 season and also was an assistant coach with the all-time great coach before taking over his duties in the 2024 Olympics, where Team USA won the gold medal.

He was also on the roster when the Spurs won the NBA Championship in 1999 and again in 2003.

It's a sad day in the NBA world and it's nice to see so many people pay respect to one of the greatest to ever do it.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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