After winning the Jazz, Spurs coach Popovich has since overtaken Don Nelson to become the most won manager in NBA history, with 1336 games, and every game he has since gone will be a new record.
And the legend doesn't stop there,
Ranked first in the NBA in the number of away wins in history;
NBA history coached a team to win the first game in the regular season;
Ranked first in the number of regular season wins in NBA history;
3-time NBA Coach of the Year;
With 5 championship trophies and an Olympic gold medal...
While coaches such as Auerbach, Phil Jackson, Nelson Sr., Wilkens, Sloan and Riley are equally great, only Popovich, in one team, has achieved such an achievement. After 26 years of holding on to the city of San Antonio, Popovich has brought us more than just one unparalleled record after another, he has also brought his coaching philosophy and personality to the league.
"The great thing about Popovich is that he always knows what the trend is." This is what guard Avery Johnson, who won the spurs' first championship, said of his mentor in an interview. Whether it's building a GDP portfolio or letting Leonard lead the team in a single-handed way later, Popovich always knows what the trend is and goes with him.
In addition to constantly "changing himself", Popovich is also very good at helping everyone improve, and this is not only at the player level, but even everyone he has worked with around him. Kerr, who won two championships with spurs, is now the champion manager of the Warriors Dynasty, and Budenholzer and Monty Williams from the coaching bench of both sides of the Finals last year are from the Spurs, especially Budenholzer, who won the coach of the year in 2015 before leading the Bucks to win the championship, when his Eagles were called "the second Spurs"...
Warriors assistant coach Mike Brown (left) and head coach Kerr (right)
Popovich has produced countless good players and coaches, and while it's impossible to make every player a superstar and every coach a champion coach, as long as you listen to his instructions and work hard for it, he'll help you get a place in this competitive league. When a bigger opportunity comes to you, you realize that his guidance, criticism, and even rants are meaningful.
And we, on the other hand, are blessed to witness,
The legend that belongs to Popovich continues.