Spurs coach Gregg Popovich retired indefinitely with an undisclosed illness

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) – Mitch Johnson is emphasizing a business-as-usual approach for the San Antonio Spurs while coach Gregg Popovich is out indefinitely while recovering from an illness.

“Just stay consistent with the message we’ve had,” Johnson said Monday night before the Spurs’ game against the Los Angeles Clippers. “Pop does so much empowerment and delegation when he’s here that in a weird way it doesn’t feel like I have to do anything super outlandish.

“Obviously there are big shoes to fill and we will do it as a group. The boys have been fantastic and the players have also stepped up in that regard.”

San Antonio announced Monday morning that Popovich was not traveling with the team on its current road trip. The Spurs are at Houston on Wednesday before hosting Portland on Thursday.

Johnson said he spoke with Popovich Sunday night and that the 75-year-old coach is in good spirits. However, there is no timeline for when Popovich might be back.

This is the third time Johnson has served as interim coach in Popovich’s absence. This is his ninth year in the Spurs organization. He started as an assistant for the Spurs’ G League team in Austin before becoming one of Popovich’s assistants in 2019.

“This has happened a few times,” Johnson said. “I’ve coached Summer League before. I’ve been behind the bench. I’ve been in the G League. All of those things helped the organization, so I think this is just another opportunity in a different role to hopefully help the team to win.”

Johnson was informed about 2 1/2 hours before Saturday’s tipoff against the Minnesota Timberwolves that Popovich was unavailable due to an undisclosed illness. The Spurs won that game 113-103 to improve to 3-3.

Johnson believes Popovich’s absence could be a motivating factor.

Victor Wembanyama, the top pick in the 2023 draft, is averaging 18 points and 9.8 rebounds, while veteran additions Chris Paul and Harrison Barnes are both averaging 11.7 points.

Early on, the biggest improvements have been on defense. San Antonio is allowing 104.7 points compared to 118.6 last season. Opponents shoot 42.7% from the field. Last season it was 48.7%.

“It’s really hard to play defense in this league. It’s a credit to Chris and Harrison, the veterans of the team, who have come in. I think you guys set a tone about some of the same things, about how hard it is to win and the attention to detail and being professional,” Johnson said. . “Victor is a big part of that as well. He’s a year older and he’s grown tremendously. It’s something we can hope to continue to build on.”

Former assistant coaches Tim Duncan and Becky Hammon have also served as Spurs head coach due to an illness or medical procedure for Popovich for the past five seasons.

Popovich is the NBA’s career leader with 1,390 wins and another 170 postseason victories while winning five NBA titles. He is in his 29th season, all with San Antonio.

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Raul Dominguez in San Antonio contributed to this story.

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