THE ROUTE from Keldon Johnson’s ranch in Boerne, Texas, to the Frost Bank Center used to be predictable. Thirty minutes on weekends, 45 during the week. But now he has to leave earlier because of construction on almost every major highway in the area.
San Antonio and the San Antonio Spurs feel like they are growing, full of new energy and people who have come to fill the wide-open spaces that used to define this part of Texas.
Even before the Spurs drafted Victor Wembanyama, first in 2023, coach Gregg Popovich was inspired by this energy. ‘What’s most enjoyable is that they are like young, clean slates. You start from the bottom and teach,’ he said in 2022, after years of leading experienced teams.
Johnson, who at 25 is the Spurs’ longest-serving player, has learned to follow Popovich’s example. That’s why they both arrived at the arena early on November 2, 2024.
Johnson was there for extra practice and treatment before a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, and Popovich, then 75, was there for his pre-game workout, which had become essential during the NBA season.
But shortly after finishing his workout near the team’s locker room, in the arena’s hallways, Popovich stopped. Team staff noticed something was wrong and helped him, according to sources.
They immediately sat Popovich down.
Nearby, Johnson heard the noise as the coach received medical attention.
‘I couldn’t see him,’ Johnson told ESPN. ‘But seeing how everyone was talking about it was scary.’
Johnson tried to get closer, but team staff were already helping Popovich, eventually taking him by ambulance to a hospital. Only a few players, staff, and arena employees knew what had happened.
‘Nobody really wanted to say anything,’ Johnson said. ‘Nobody wanted to let us in and tell us what was really going on. The unknown was really tough.’
Around 5:15 p.m., reporters gathered for Popovich’s pre-game press conference. While he is usually on time, it wasn’t unusual for Popovich to be late or miss these events. Once last season, he was stuck in traffic coming from the team’s new training facility.
Other times, he missed games for minor medical procedures or personal reasons. An assistant coach who had scouted the opponent usually filled in.
So, it wasn’t surprising when Spurs spokesman Tom James announced around 5:30 that Popovich was ‘unwell’ and assistant coach Mitch Johnson would lead the team that night.
However, behind the scenes, word was spreading that what had happened to Popovich, the foundation of the Spurs’ success, was serious and possibly life-threatening.
It took time for doctors to determine the extent of the damage after what was diagnosed as a mild stroke. Players couldn’t talk to him for weeks. It was months before he was strong enough to walk and then address the team.
‘It’s been pretty tough for me,’ Johnson said. ‘He’s been our role model since I got here. He’s been that leader.’
Much has happened in the five months since. The Spurs made a big trade to get All-NBA guard De’Aaron Fox. Stephon Castle has become the likely Rookie of the Year. Wembanyama looked like the superstar he was expected to be before a blood clot in his arm ended his season.
But Popovich hasn’t coached since that night and won’t coach again this season. Veteran Harrison Barnes said Popovich is recovering ‘ahead of schedule.’ Another source said he has progressed in five months of rehab as much as many stroke patients do in nine months. Still, it’s unknown if he can return next season.
It’s a strange new situation for everyone. The bond between Popovich and the Spurs has been so strong that it fueled the franchise’s rise. They grew together, evolved, aged, and then started again. Until Popovich stopped that November afternoon, leaving everyone at a turning point. The long-discussed succession plan became urgent, and decisions that were once his to make might no longer be.
For the first time in three decades, the man at the center of the city and franchise has been on a different sideline, fighting to return to what he was.
THERE ARE REMINDERS of Popovich’s influence throughout San Antonio. Bird Bakery in Alamo Heights, where he ordered custom cookies for his 70th birthday. Battalion, a fine dining Italian restaurant in Firehouse 7, where Popovich is an investor. Or Bar Loretta, one of his favorite French bistros in Southtown. Every waiter has a story about Popovich’s visits.
Johnson has one too. Popovich invited Johnson and the rookie class to a fancy dinner at Bliss, a restaurant in Southtown. ‘He was like, ‘Y’all try these oysters,” Johnson said. ‘And Quinndary [Weatherspoon] was like, ‘I ain’t never had oysters.”
‘You want to play?’ Popovich said. ‘You better try the oysters.’
Fortunately for Johnson, he had tried oysters, passing Popovich’s first test. Over the next five years, more tests followed.
In 2021, he invited Johnson to the national team camp, saying, ‘I need you to be ready because I’m telling everyone you’re ready.’ Johnson thought he was invited to the junior team camp, which was still daunting.
But Popovich believed in him more and chose him for the Olympic team.
‘He’s really shaped who I am as a young man,’ Johnson said. ‘Many think Pop is stern. No, he’s one of the best people I’ve ever met. He treats everyone well and puts others first.’
His legacy is solid, even if he had retired after San Antonio’s last championship in 2014. The five championships the Spurs won during their 22-year playoff run under Popovich and executive R.C. Buford are in The Rock, the largest mass timber sports facility in North America.
Located 20 miles up Highway 10, at 1 Spurs Way, the organization spent $500 million to open the 45-acre venue in 2023. Besides facilities for the Spurs, there are parks, restaurants, trails, a 40-foot LED screen for games and ‘sing-along Sundays,’ and plans for a medical center. It reflects Popovich’s values.
Inside the 134,000-square-foot building is Popovich’s coaching mantra, The Stonecutter’s Credo:
When nothing seems to help, I go and look at a stonecutter hammering away at his rock perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred and first blow it will split in two, and I know it was not that blow that did it, but all that had gone before.
This quote from Jacob Riis influences Popovich and the Spurs, though Popovich claims he played a small role. But it’s the Spurs Way.
‘I was tasked with creating an environment for success,’ he said at his Hall of Fame ceremony in 2023, delayed until his Hall of Fame players were inducted.
Popovich’s impact on basketball and the Spurs is immeasurable.
‘Pop is as good a coach as there has ever been in any sport,’ Mike Krzyzewzski said.
Their friendship grew later in their careers.
‘We became close when he became the national coach and I was still the national coach,’ Krzyzewski says. ‘I wish we had been closer earlier.’
He admired Popovich’s leadership and use of his platform. They connected over their military backgrounds. Krzyzewski was in the Army; Popovich was in the Air Force.
Krzyzewski planned his retirement and successor [Jon Scheyer] in 2022 at 75. He was ready to stop traveling and recruiting and had a role at Duke and family life waiting.
Popovich wasn’t ready. His passion for coaching, especially this young team with Wembanyama, remains. And the Spurs agree.
‘It’s Pop’s decision,’ someone close to the situation said. ‘He’s earned that.’
THAT HAS BEEN the Spurs’ succession plan for years. Each summer, Popovich considers the season and his passion. Buford and others trust Popovich to be honest about what’s best for the organization.
Over the years, assistants like Mike Brown, Mike Budenholzer, and Brett Brown were considered successors but became head coaches elsewhere. Then came Ime Udoka, Becky Hammon, Will Hardy, James Borrego, Monty Williams, and Taylor Jenkins. Popovich outlasted them all.
Last year, there was talk that Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr, who played for Popovich, could be a successor if he didn’t extend with the Warriors. But Kerr re-signed with Golden State, and is expected to stay as long as Stephen Curry plays well.
So, Johnson became interim head coach in November. Compared to others, Johnson’s experience was less. He played at Stanford, came through the Spurs system, and was respected in coaching circles after interviewing for a head coaching job in Toronto.
‘Seeing him in this position isn’t a shock. He belongs there,’ Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez, a former teammate of Johnson’s at Stanford, said.
‘Such an intelligent basketball player, highest IQ I’ve seen,’ Lopez said. ‘He sees the game differently. We called him ‘maestro’ for how he runs the show.’
James, the Spurs’ communications official for 30 years, knew the LA media didn’t know Johnson before the game against the LA Clippers on November 4.
‘For those not from San Antonio, our coach tonight is Mitch Johnson,’ James said before Johnson spoke.
The mood was somber. Popovich’s situation was still unclear.
Earlier that day, officials told the team Popovich had a stroke, sources said. He was in the hospital, and the severity was unknown.
It was a difficult update. They had been unsure for two days, and now learned it was serious. They only knew their leader was taken away in an ambulance.
Before the game, veteran point guard Chris Paul spoke for the players near the locker room.
‘We know he’s watching,’ Paul said. ‘He’ll tell us what he sees. Everyone misses him because he’s Pop. He brings calm to the room.’
Mitch Johnson also spoke about Popovich before warming up the team. ‘Pop’s impact on our organization is hard to describe. He’s been great for me personally, and his health is the priority. I spoke to him last night. He’s in good spirits. He’s OK, and we want him back.’
The Spurs started strong against the Clippers, leading by 26 points in the first quarter. But the emotion took its toll.
They lost, 113-104.
SAN ANTONIO is changing quickly, but the Spurs move slowly. Changes happen privately, announced quietly.
In the past nine years, leadership changed from owner Peter Holt, who retired in 2016, to his ex-wife, Julianna Hawn Holt, and their children, Peter John Holt and Corrina Holt Richter. Minority owners and partners like Michael Dell, Joe Gebbia, and the McCombs family have also joined.
These are major changes for the franchise. In bigger cities, it would be huge news. But for the Spurs, there were local stories, and things continued as usual for three decades.
This is because of Popovich and Buford, who met 39 years ago and have been together since. Buford is CEO; Popovich is president and coach. Brian Wright is GM since 2019.
The organization acts when there is clarity, not speculation.
The Spurs have given four updates on Popovich since November 2. First, he wouldn’t travel to LA. Then, on November 13, he had a mild stroke and was expected to recover.
On December 16, Popovich thanked everyone for their support, joking that ‘no one is more excited for my return than my rehab team. They’ve learned I’m less than coachable.’
Finally, on February 27, he announced he wouldn’t return this season but hoped to coach again.
Between updates, his recovery progressed. After weeks in the hospital, he was released and started walking again months later.
He communicated with staff, management, and players during rehab. Keldon Johnson said Popovich’s texts and calls showed he was following the team closely.
‘He’ll say he’s proud, that he loves me,’ Johnson said. ‘In a long season, those conversations push me through.’
By late January, Popovich could address the team in person. But the Rodeo road trip made it difficult. Initially, it was planned for after the All-Star break, but that changed when Wembanyama hurt his shoulder in Wyoming.
Two days later, Wembanyama was ruled out for the season with a blood clot.
On February 27, between games in Houston and Memphis, Popovich spoke to the team. His absence, Wembanyama’s news, and the long road trip had taken a toll. The Spurs had lost four straight and were out of playoff contention.
On the practice court, Popovich told them he wouldn’t return this season, but he had been watching and would hold them accountable.
‘Everyone shut up when he walked in,’ Johnson said. ‘That’s Pop. He’s still recovering, but he was still cussing. ‘Y’all need defense. Y’all need to rebound.’ It was huge knowing he was watching and calling out specifics.
‘It was what we needed. He brought that spark back. The Pop we know and love. He was back.’
He spoke slower, more deliberately. In a black sweatsuit, Popovich talked about the future, hoping to be back on the bench. But he also set a standard from his three decades.
If I can’t be 100% myself, I’m doing everyone a disservice.
His words were met with silence and nods.
‘It’s bigger than basketball,’ Fox said. ‘It’s about his life.’
The message resonated.
‘It’s inspiring,’ Fox said. ‘What he’s going through, fighting back to be out there. It shows who he is, and you can tell he wants to be back.’
Fox, who will miss the rest of the season with a finger injury, had only spoken to Popovich by phone since joining the team in February. This was their first meeting.
‘It went from serious to funny and back,’ Fox told ESPN. ‘He keeps people engaged, which is why he’s done this so long. We want him healthy, but I’d love to be coached by Pop.’
DESPITE CHANGES in San Antonio since Popovich arrived in 1988, some things remain.
People leave the Spurs but often return to San Antonio. It’s a forever home. Once in the Spurs family, there’s always a place.
Monty Williams returned after his wife’s death in 2016 and again after being fired in Phoenix and Detroit. He coaches his sons and Tim Duncan’s son at TMI Episcopal High School.
Duncan stayed after retiring in 2016. Ginobili joined the Spurs and brings his sons to games. Parker has returned often, planning his basketball future.
Mike Brown, Danny Ferry, and Chris Grant have also returned.
This is the Spurs Way, created by Popovich. The question is how it evolves without him.
It’s a question for years, but still unreal, despite recent events. Many can’t imagine any other way.
But much has changed. Popovich has given more coaching duties to assistants over the years.
He even moved from his Dominion home to a Southtown penthouse a few years ago, selling his beloved house in 2020.
His children are grown. His wife, Erin, passed away in 2018. Everything changed, so he did too.
During his Hall of Fame speech, the private man acknowledged his experiences and future hopes.
He thanked his children, Mickey and Jill, and praised his grandchildren, Bridget and Finn.
‘My wife Erin was our rock,’ he said. ‘My daughter Jill keeps us on track.’
This year, he’s fighting to return to his life, for his family, team, and city, and to decide on his own terms when to leave.
ESPN’s Tim MacMahon contributed to this report.
