Hall of Fame San Antonio Spurs head coach and team president Gregg Popovich has been away from the team since undergoing an undisclosed medical issue on Saturday night, ahead of San Antonio’s eventual 113-103 upset victory over the mighty Minnesota Timberwolves.
Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich Out Indefinitely Due to Health Issue
Popovich had led the club to a 2-3 record. The team is 1-1 under his interim replacement, Mitch Johnson, this season. Johnson had played for the Stanford Cardinal from 2005-09, which included a 2008 Sweet 16 berth. He played for the then-D League club the Tulsa 66ers. Johnson was hired to work as an assistant coach for San Antonio’s G League affiliate, the Austin Spurs from 2016-19.
The 39-year-old has served on Popovich’s San Antonio staff since 2019. He has stepped in for Popovich twice before.
First, Johnson replaced Popovich for one game in May 2021, when Popovich celebrated former Spurs superstar power forward/center Tim Duncan’s Hall of Fame induction in 2021. San Antonio lost that matchup. Next, Popovich was also ailing for a March 2023 game against the Indiana Pacers. Johnson coached the club to a 110-99 win.
In speaking with ESPN’s Malika Andrews and Ramona Shelburne on “NBA Today,” her colleague Shams Charania provided a discouraging update on Popovich’s status. Lorenzo Reyes of USA Today initially reported that Popovich was going to miss at least two contests. Now, it appears that Johnson’s tenure will last at least a bit longer.
“Malika, I’m told that it was a health issue, and it was a serious health issue, that the Spurs dealt with and Gregg Popovich dealt with over the weekend,” Charania said. “It was a situation on Saturday night pregame, that Gregg Popovich needed medical attention [for] in San Antonio. It is still uncertain when he is going to make it back on the floor, on the sidelines for this team. There is a great level of concern around the situation for the Spurs, for Gregg Popovich.”
Popovich was initially hired to work as the Spurs’ general manager and vice president of basketball operations in 1994 by then-new owner Peter Holt. He fired head coach Bob Hill in Dec. 1996 and installed himself in that role. In 2002, he replaced himself with R.C. Buford as the club’s general manager but maintained a key front-office role by staying on as San Antonio’s president.
“In the meantime, assistant coach Mitch Johnson has stepped in as the acting interim head coach,” Charania added. “He’s a rising head coach in this league. Malika, I’m told he was a finalist for the Washington Wizards’ head coaching job a season ago… that went to Brian Keefe,” Charania said, adding that Johnson “will be at the helm for the foreseeable future.”
Keefe has led a young, raw Wizards squad to a 2-4 record this year.
A three-time Coach of the Year, Popovich led San Antonio to six NBA Finals appearances, and five championships, between 1999-2014.
Popovich, the longest-tenured head coach in the league by a decade, has led the Spurs to an overall 1,388-821 regular season win-loss record, and a 170-114 postseason record. He has stewarded the Hall of Fame careers of several immortals, from league MVPs Duncan and David Robinson to All-NBA superstars Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, and Kawhi Leonard. Leonard remains active, but he will be a Hall of Famer when he retires.
Now, with second-year center Victor Wembaynama already looking like an All-Star, it appears that San Antonio is poised for more postseason glory. Hopefully, Popovich, now 75, will be back at the helm for the club’s next deep playoff run. Future Hall of Famer Chris Paul, now far past his All-NBA prime, joined the club this year to help set up Wembanyama for mind-bending alley-oops. San Antonio is currently 3-4 in this young season.
More news: Victor Wembanyama Sends Direct Warning To Rest of World Following Defeat to Team USA
For all the latest San Antonio Spurs and NBA news, check out Newsweek Sports.
Read the full article here
