点击查看原文：Inside Gregg Popovich's emotional meeting with Spurs players

Inside Gregg Popovich’s emotional meeting with Spurs players

San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich talks to guard Chris Paul (3) and center Victor Wembanyama (1) during the first half of their NBA preseason game with Orlando at the Frost Bank Center on Wednesday, Oct 9, 2024. San Antonio beat Orlando 107-97.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – A hush fell over the Spurs’ practice facility on Thursday morning, creating a particular strain of nervous quiet that forward Keldon Johnson had not heard in a long time.

It could only mean one thing: Gregg Popovich was back in the building.

“We show everybody respect, but you definitely know when Pop is there,” Johnson said. "Everybody shuts the (expletive) up.”

This was no ordinary team meeting.

It marked the first time the 76-year-old Hall of Fame coach had addressed his players in person since suffering a season-ending stroke on the afternoon of Nov. 2.

For Johnson and other Spurs, the pin-drop silence Popovich’s presence spawned was music to the ears.

“He just has a different kind of aura,” forward Sandro Mamukelashvili said. “Like when the principal walks into your classroom.”

The purported purpose of Popovich’s visit to the gym Thursday was to deliver bittersweet news.

Popovich and his doctors had decided it would not be in his best interest to attempt to coach again this season. The team will remain in the hands of acting coach Mitch Johnson, as has been the case for all but the first five games of the campaign.

Popovich wanted players to hear the headline directly from him.

The coach also made clear he was not surrendering the goal of returning to the bench at some point in the future, a desire he would reiterate in a written public statement the Spurs released after the players’ meeting.

San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich argues a call with an official during the second half of their game with the Milwaukee Bucks at the Frost Bank Center on Thursday, Jan. 4, 2024. Milwaukee beat the Spurs 125-121.

Johnson, who in his sixth season has played for Popovich longer than anyone one roster, said the scene at the practice facility was an emotional one.

“People look at the basketball aspect of everything, but the well-being of Pop is what’s most important,” Johnson said before Saturday’s game in Memphis. “To see him and hear his voice and see he’s doing better, that was the main thing for me. He has the mindset he’s going to keep fighting and keep battling. It’s definitely been inspiring for us.”

Mostly, the Spurs were heartened to see their coach looking and behaving mostly like the Popovich they remembered.

“Other than things that come with the road to recovery he was himself, talking and things like that,” Johnson said.

Mitch Johnson said Popovich’s appearance “meant a lot” to players and staffers.

“It was just cool to see him holding court in front of the guys again,” he said. “That was what was pretty cool and powerful to see, just to see their engagement and attention on him.”

Popovich wasn’t the only key figure Spurs players caught up with Thursday.

Also in attendance was Victor Wembanyama, the All-Star center who was ruled out for the season with deep vein thrombosis Feb. 21.

For many players, it was the first time to see Wembanyama since before the All-Star break.

“He’s in a great mindset as well,” Keldon Johnson said. “We got to go home and see two people that really are a big part of what we’re doing. Knowing they’re both doing great, it was huge for the team.”

Thursday’s meeting was not all about Popovich’s health outlook.

Not with the Spurs in the throes of a losing skid that hit four in a row heading into Memphis. Not after they blew double-digit leads to lose consecutive games against the lowly New Orleans Pelicans earlier in the week.

“He had some spirited words about how we’ve been playing,” veteran forward Harrison Barnes said.

Were any of those words of the four-letter variety?

“They were sprinkled in,” Barnes said with a grin. “That’s how you know he’s doing well.”

The message was transparent. Though out of sight, Popovich is still watching.

And the players remain accountable to their boss.

Johnson said Popovich spent part of the meeting discussing specific situations in recent games the Spurs could have handled better.

“It’s like, shoot, he really is watching the games,” Johnson said. “He’s still there. He’s going to get on our ass and tell us what we’re doing wrong.”

This is how much the Spurs have missed their head coach. They are even wistful for the days of being cursed out by him.

“We wouldn’t want it any other way,” Johnson said. “That was a plus to know, damn, he’s still watching the games, still critiquing, still got that coaching mindset.”

If or when Popovich will be able to do his coaching from courtside instead of from in front the television remains an open question.

Largely, that will be decided by Popovich, his medical team and the Spurs organization.

For now, players can only focus on finishing out the season as best they can under Mitch Johnson, while they await the return of the silence only Popovich himself can generate.

“It’s been tough, for him and for us,” Keldon Johnson said. “He knows that we have his back, and he’s just got to keep fighting, keep confident every day and keep going every day kicking ass. He’s going to do that. We know that 100%.”