Popovich: That's One Way to Do It.

Whack somebody. Replace him with yourself. Boom. History

Thank you for reading The Dope.

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This isn’t the most flattering way to look back on Gregg Popovich’s stunning run as an NBA head coach, but bear with me. Popovich got his big break nearly 30 years ago when the San Antonio Spurs fired another coach and appointed Pop to take that man’s place.

The person doing the firing: Gregg Popovich.

The person doing the hiring: Gregg Popovich.

All true. And in this case, we can certainly argue that the sports end justified the means. But my goodness, let’s not pretend that the NBA isn’t a sea full of sharks. Pop just happened to be an apex predator. People didn’t know that about him until they suddenly did.

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Popovich’s retirement from coaching, announced Friday, was probably a done deal months ago. The 76-year-old suffered what has always been described as a mild stroke last November while at the Spurs’ facility prior to a game, and although his return to the sidelines was the subject of quite a bit of speculation, it was never close to actually happening.

"While my love and passion for the game remain, I've decided it's time to step away as head coach," said Popovich, who’ll remain in a front office capacity. "I'm forever grateful to the wonderful players, coaches, staff and fans who allowed me to serve them as the Spurs head coach, and am excited for the opportunity to continue to support the organization, community and city that are so meaningful to me."

He had an incredible run, with five NBA championships to show. The Popovich coaching/mentoring tree, meanwhile, features a handful of guys who’ve also won rings, including Steve Kerr, Doc Rivers and Mike Budenholzer.

Really transcendent. But let me tell you, this legendary career began with a professional hit.

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The year was 1996. The Spurs’ coach was a man named Bob Hill. In the previous two seasons, Hill had guided San Antonio to gaudy records of 62-20 and 59-23, and the Spurs reached the Western Conference semifinals twice and the finals once.

They were really good, is my point. But near the start of the ‘96 campaign, their star player, center David Robinson, pulled up with a bad back, and he missed the first 18 games of the regular season.

San Antonio went 3-15 in those games, which kinda figures. Nevertheless, Popovich, who at the time was serving as the team’s general manager, summarily fired Hill and inserted himself as coach. The word was that, behind the scenes, Popovich didn’t like the way Hill had coached during the previous season’s playoff run and thought he was losing the locker room. Still, fans and the media alike were taken aback by the firing, and Popovich — who had never been a professional head coach at any level — got booed by his home crowd when he took the court. I mean, it’s easier to win with David Robinson than without, right?

Anyway, away Bob Hill went. Pop took over. Robinson returned from his back injury, played six games, then broke his foot, ending his season.

The Spurs finished 20-62.

And drafted Tim Duncan in the lottery.

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And, you know, that’s it. That is really the story. Popovich and the Spurs’ front office made seemingly a million great decisions in the decades after that, but nothing will top the fact that they got Tim Duncan in the lottery because David Robinson broke his foot half a dozen games after Pop whacked Bob Hill and named himself head coach.

Duncan and Robinson together won two NBA titles over the next few seasons, and then Duncan-led teams won three more after that. Popovich’s legacy was secured, and the coach went on to burnish that legacy via a career filled with kind acts and famous promotions of his assistants, aggressive-to-the-point-of-angry coaching, overwhelming compassion for his players, and a half-serious irritation with the media that was usually pretty fun to watch.

Popovich is rightly regarded as one of the finest coaches in NBA history. The last decade of his career was less brilliant, with six straight losing seasons following the Spurs’ most recent playoff appearance in 2019, but nothing can take the shine off those five NBA trophies. He’s got an Olympic gold medal, too, in case there’s any doubt about his ability to coach talent.

He had to shove a guy out of the way in order to do all that. But, hey — pro sports.

Oh: After his firing in San Antonio, Bob Hill didn’t work in the NBA again for almost a decade. He coached at Fordham University for a few seasons, and then the Seattle SuperSonics hired him in 2006 to replace a coach they’d fired, Bob Weiss. Hill lasted a year and a half in Seattle. Rough business.