A new era is finally on the horizon for the San Antonio Spurs. Fortunately, for their fans and basketball purists across the country, though, it will at least begin with the leader of the former one still in place.
In an interview with Sage Steel of ESPN, Gregg Popovich confirmed that San Antonio’s signing of LaMarcus Aldridge has extended the length of his coaching career. Here’s the future Hall of Famer, courtesy of Business Insider’s Cork Gaines.
“Signing LaMarcus [Aldridge], I had to make a commitment,” Popovich said with a hesitation and a smile. “I couldn’t say, ‘LaMarcus, we would love to sign you, see you later.’ So I committed to those guys, and I committed to LaMarcus. So, I’ve got to fulfill my promise.”
Popovich, 66, signed a contract extension of undisclosed terms after guiding the Spurs to a championship in 2014. Following a heartbreaking postseason loss to the Los Angeles Clippers last spring, San Antonio lifted its window for legitimate contention by luring Aldridge from the Northwest back home to Texas.
It had long been assumed that Popovich would retire whenever Tim Duncan, who the coach recently credited for the Spurs’ five titles, finally decides to hang it up. ESPN’s Marc Stein reported in July that the three-time Coach of the Year planned to stick around for the duration of his new contract, though, and now we have confirmation of that plan from the horse’s mouth himself.
Congratulations, San Antonio! You not only have arguably the most talented roster in the league and key building blocks going forward, but the coach best-suited to lead Spurs teams of the present and future.
[Via Business Insider]
