After suffering a stroke last November 2nd, San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich has longed hoped to return to coaching the team that he’s loved so much over the years. However, with his condition, he has now elected to step down from his coaching post and will take over the Spurs as its new president of basketball operations moving forward.

At the age of 76, Popovich has only coached five games in the 2024-25 season, and it cannot be denied that he has been missed well by the team as they ended up with one of the worst records in the NBA this season. His retirement from coaching ends a three-decade run of leadership in the Spurs organization, which has led to five championships and is the league’s all-time wins leader among coaches.

Popovich’s health condition has improved, but perhaps the risks were too great for him to be physically present on the court for 82 games. There are a lot of travels, and there are back-to-back games, which are physically taking a toll on players as well. Popovich had to step down from his coaching job but is keen to still be a part of the team at this point.

End of an Era

Popovich has led the Spurs to a magical dynasty over the years. His career ends with a whopping record of 1,422-869 – the best in league history. That number also includes the 77 games that were coached by interim coach Mitch Johnson, which ended at 32-45. Popovich has also won 170 playoff games – the most by any coach with a single team and third overall behind Phil Jackson’s 229 and Pat Riley’s 171.

“While my love and passion for the game remain, I’ve decided it’s time to step away as head coach,” Popovich said. “I’m forever grateful to the wonderful players, coaches, staff, and fans who allowed me to serve them as the Spurs head coach, and am excited for the opportunity to continue to support the organization, community, and city that are so meaningful to me.”

Popovich ended up winning the Coach of the Year award three times and even led the US to a gold medal finish in the Tokyo Olympics. He coached six Hall of Famers in San Antonio and has gone up against a total of 170 different coaches during his time in the NBA.

Gregg Popovich began his run with the Spurs in 1996 and has since led the franchise to greater heights over the years.

New Era for San Antonio

With Johnson taking over for the team, San Antonio enters a new era of basketball, especially with the Victor Wembanyama era also starting to kick off. This just means that the Spurs will be finding themselves in a new approach with a new coach at the helm. It cannot be denied that there are high expectations from the team at this point, but it will all come down as to how their next season will run for the better.

The Spurs have Wembanyama healing from his injuries, De’Aaron Fox winding up for a bigger campaign, Chris Paul eager to share his veteran experience in the game, and Stephon Castle coming off a promising rookie season in which he ended up winning ROTY.

This new era for the Spurs is looking good, and that’s how Popovich has set them up for success.