LeBron James had the opportunity to face the legendary coach of the San Antonio Spurs, Gregg Popovich, several times in his career. Therefore, the four-time NBA Champion knows a good deal about Coach Pop’s competitive fervor. On the latest episode of his Mind The Game podcast, James recalled one of his intense Coach Pop memories while facing the Spurs in an NBA Finals game.
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Coach Pop has always been meticulous about his players maintaining their best form during a game, especially in the postseason. During an NBA Finals contest against the Spurs, LeBron James was surprised when Popovich called out Danny Green, who allowed James’ team to score a three-pointer. The decision was not surprising. What was surprising was that it came in the first few minutes of the game.
With 11 minutes and 52 seconds remaining in the first quarter, Popovich called a timeout for the Spurs. He seemed visibly angry at Danny Green and reprimanded him harshly. LeBron described the moment as follows, “I didn’t even know if they made the damn three, but he [Pop] called a time-out right away. Got on Danny Green. ‘What the f**k Danny.’[imitating Coach Pop] Got on his ass, took him out, brought him back in. But obviously, they had something in place and then they executed.”
Coach Popovich is known for being a perfectionist in his coaching methods and brutal to his team when they fail to perform as per his expectations. Coach Pop’s tough love for his players won the Spurs five NBA championships and has turned several players, such as Tony Parker and Tim Duncan, into legends as we know them today. The veteran coach continues to lead the way for San Antonio, currently trying to rebuild his team around the star rookie Victor Wembanyama.
Gregg Popovich has a history of going off on Danny Green
Danny Green was a crucial piece in the Spurs’ 2014 campaign for their fifth NBA championship. Though the shooting guard was one of the best in his positions for the Spurs, he wasn’t safe from facing Gregg Popovich’s wrath if he ever fell out of his form.
During a closely contested game against the Brooklyn Nets in 2014, Green got a foul while trying to defend against the Nets. The score was at 95-93 with 25 seconds remaining. Being on the losing end, the Spurs could not afford to pick a foul and allow the Nets to score free throws.
Coach Pop was beyond exasperated and could be seen muttering the words, “Shut the f**k up” to Danny Green for not listening to his instructions. This was just one of many examples where Coach Pop lost his cool with his players. Nevertheless, this tough love from the coach often results in the Spurs players becoming beasts on the court, like Wemby has become already.
