Legendary Gregg Popovich retired from coaching the San Antonio Spurs in 2025 and handed the reins to current head coach Mitch Johnson.
Despite stepping into a front-office role while dealing with health issues, Popovich has remained heavily involved with the organization, especially during the Western Conference Finals series against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
San Antonio responded with a dominant Game 4 victory to even the series at 2-2, and according to De’Aaron Fox, much of that urgency stemmed from Popovich’s reaction after the Spurs’ Game 3 loss.
Fox revealed after Sunday’s win that Popovich strongly addressed the team in the locker room following Friday night’s defeat.
“We lost Game 3… but that was the first time [Popovich] walked into the locker room and was like, ‘Nah, that’s [expletive]… That’s not how we play basketball,’” Fox said. “Obviously he had some choice words for us… that was the first time all season that he came into the locker room right after a game and told us how he felt.”
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Game 3 marked Fox’s first action of the series, as he missed the opening two games with a high ankle sprain that he still appears to be dealing with.
Despite not having his usual burst off the dribble, Fox has remained highly impactful since returning to the lineup. In Sunday night’s Game 4 win, he led the San Antonio Spurs with 10 rebounds while also contributing 12 points and five assists.
The Spurs will return to action Tuesday night when they travel back to Oklahoma City for Game 5.
At the very least, San Antonio has guaranteed itself one more game at home after extending the series to six games. The Spurs are now trying to knock off the defending champions and reach the NBA Finals for the first time since 2014 — the last season they won a championship with Popovich leading the way.
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