Gregg Popovich is no longer coaching the Spurs, but he has not left them. After retiring from coaching last year and later stepping away from the sideline in a postseason news conference, Popovich has spent this season working behind the scenes as a steady voice for a young team still trying to find its footing.
The 76-year-old is formally listed as the president of basketball operations, yet his most visible impact has come in the conversations that do not show up in a box score. Players say he is still around, still listening and still pushing them. Devin Vassell said Popovich keeps giving him feedback, truth and honesty. Carter Bryant said Popovich has been a big part of the whole year, adding that the Hall of Fame coach texts him nearly after every game and talks to him on the phone about three times a week. Bryant said that sometimes Popovich calls so quickly after games that the team is still in the locker room when the phone rings.
That relationship has mattered because the Spurs have been in a stretch of transition since Mitch Johnson stepped in on an interim basis in November 2024 after Popovich suffered a stroke. Johnson has taken over the sideline duties, but Popovich has continued to shape the team from a different chair, offering support to the coach and players alike. The Athletic reported that he has been backing Johnson and everyone in the locker room behind the scenes, a role that fits the image he used after the season when he said he would step away from coaching and take on the role of “El Jefe.”
For a roster built around younger players, the value of that kind of presence is hard to measure but easy to hear in their comments. Steph Castle, in his second year, has leaned on Popovich often for advice and for help figuring out the season. Keldon Johnson talks to him every day. Bryant said the chance to have the greatest coach of all time within reach has been unforgettable, describing it as amazing to have that kind of experience close by. The larger picture is clear: even without the title of head coach, Popovich has remained a daily part of the Spurs’ life.
The tension in all of it is obvious. Popovich has retired from coaching, and the organization has moved on formally with Johnson on the bench, but the old coach has not disappeared from the room. That split between title and influence is what makes this season unusual. The Spurs are trying to build a new voice on the sideline while still relying on the one that defined the franchise for decades.
What comes next depends on whether this version of Popovich’s role remains a bridge or becomes the model. For now, the Spurs score of this season may be found less in wins and losses than in the way their most experienced figure keeps reaching players one text, one call and one piece of advice at a time.
