Gregg Popovich helped Steve Novak land the break that changed his career. Novak said the longtime San Antonio Spurs coach pushed him toward a one-year guaranteed deal with the New York Knicks in 2011 after he was cut from a non-guaranteed Spurs training camp contract.
Novak said Popovich told him he was being released, then said he would fly to New York City that day after Mike D’Antoni called and said the Knicks wanted him. Popovich, Novak said, made clear the Spurs would not let him go unless New York agreed to a one-year, $1.4 million guaranteed contract and promised him a real role.
The former forward recounted the move on a podcast, saying his agent had warned him before practice to be respectful because something good was coming, even though the message sounded strange at the time. Novak said he went into Popovich’s office expecting bad news, only to hear that the Knicks deal was already in motion.
That arrangement became a turning point. Novak signed the one-year, $1.4 million guaranteed contract in 2011 and went on to average 8.8 points per game that season while shooting 47.2% from three-point range. The next year he still provided value, averaging 6.6 points while shooting 42.5% from deep, production that fit neatly into D’Antoni’s up-tempo offense.
For the Knicks, Novak’s shooting made sense alongside Carmelo Anthony and later Jeremy Lin during Linsanity, when floor spacing mattered as much as scoring. For Novak, who had bounced around the league and the G League before establishing himself as a specialist, the opportunity gave him stability at a moment when his NBA future was hanging by a thread.
Novak said the deal was not just a basketball decision. He said Popovich later told him, “This is better for you,” and Mike Budenholzer, then an assistant with the Spurs, later explained that Popovich had only agreed to move him after making D’Antoni accept the one-year term and a bigger role. That is why, Novak said, the release was really a handoff.
The story also showed how much leverage Popovich still had over a player who was trying to keep his career alive. Mark Bartelstein had to call around and ask teams to leave Novak on waivers, underscoring how fragile the move was before the Knicks stepped in. Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich stays close to team in new behind-the-scenes role, but Novak’s account from years later is a reminder of how he could shape a career with one phone call and one condition.
Novak said he still thinks back to that day with gratitude. “If it wasn’t for him saying, this is going to be better for you and your family, none of it happens,” he said, crediting Popovich for pushing him into a situation that finally let his shot become his job.
