First, get well Pop.
We can’t wait to see you back on the sideline doing what you enjoy doing and doing what we enjoy watching you do: coach the San Antonio Spurs.
Gregg Popovich had a mild stroke before the Spurs’ game against Minnesota on Nov. 2, the team said in a news release Wednesday.
The team said Popovich has “already started a rehabilitation program (and) is expected to make a full recovery. At this point, a timeline for his return to the sidelines has not been determined.”
Take your time Pop. We want to see you back but only when doctors say you can and when you’re up for it.
The Spurs, the NBA and the game will be there when you’re ready to return. Heck, there will even be a sideline reporter relishing the opportunity to ask you a between-quarter, on-court question.
There are probably just a handful of organizations equipped to manage the absence of a Hall of Fame coach and the Spurs are one of them because of investment in continuity and stability from the franchise, starting at the top.
The Holt family has held majority ownership of the team for nearly three decades. Spurs Sports and Entertainment CEO RC Buford joined the franchise in 1988, left in 1992 and returned in 1994 and has been there since in a variety of front-office roles. That’s 34 years.
Buford and Popovich, now in his 29th season as head coach and the NBA’s all-time winningest coach, have created a model that other franchises try to emulate.
Assistant coach Brett Brown, who first joined the Spurs in 1998 and is now in his second stint, and 15th season, has been part of four championship teams. Assistant coach Mitch Johnson, who is serving as acting coach in Popovich’s absence, is in his ninth season with San Antonio. General manager Brian Wright is also in his ninth season. Dave Telep is in his 12th season with San Antonio, now serving as vice president of basketball operations. And director of collegiate scouting George Felton has been with the Spurs since 2006.
It goes on. Head trainer Will Sevening was hired in 1998 and team physician David R. Schmidt has been with the Spurs for 32 seasons.
They would have even more long-serving basketball staffers but the Spurs do such a good job that their employees are hired by other teams.
That’s not to say the Spurs won’t miss Pop during his absence – they will in multiple ways including his famous team dinners – but the engine will run with minimal trouble.
The Spurs have a plan for the team and for individual players, and the staffers that have been around Popovich for so long will be able to carry out those plans. It won’t be the same as hearing it from Popovich, but the players, including second-year star Victor Wembanyama, know the messages originate from Popovich.
And it’s a solid hunch that Popovich will be watching and probably even sending messages to players and coaches.
So, get well Pop. We look forward to your return but we will do it patiently.
Follow Jeff Zillgitt on social media @JeffZillgitt