During his Basketball Hall of Fame speech on Saturday night, San Antonio Spurs legendary coach Gregg Popovich said he’s been waiting a long time to hear his name called to forever be enshrined in the Springfield, Massachusetts, halls.
So, when his speech was about to get cut off, he sent host Ahmad Rashad back behind the curtain to finish what he had to say.
“I’m not done. I’ve been waiting for this for a long time. I’m not done,” Popovich said on the microphone at the podium as the crowd laughed.
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The reason for Rashad walking out on stage was due to Popovich giving the “second reason” why he was able to reach the Hall because of his accomplishments.
“One word and that word is ‘Duh,’” Popovich said as he walked to his right to shake the hands of a few cornerstone Spurs pieces that were key reasons for him becoming the winningest head coach in NBA history.
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Rashad took that as Popovich was done with his speech. He thought wrong.
“I didn’t say duh was the end. I just said there’s one word to describe why I’m here and that’s ‘Duh, those guys,’” Popovich said while the crowd continued to crack up.
Popovich went on to discuss the accomplishments of the four Spurs legends next to him: Tony Parker, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and David Robinson. He knew the type of talent he had on his bench, and because of that, Popovich noted having to be his genuine self to gain their respect and accept his coaching.
For Popovich, that meant calling things straight, never sugarcoating and developing mutual respect for the player and person. He said players had a good “bulls— antennae.”
Popovich won five NBA titles as well as 1,536 total games between the regular season and playoffs, and he isn’t done coaching just yet. He is in charge of grooming the No. 1 overall pick of the 2023 NBA Draft, French phenom Victor Wembenyama, as Popovich hopes to bring the Spurs back to the playoffs.
Popovich was inducted into the Hall of Fame with Parker, Dwyane Wade, Pau Gasol and Becky Hammon.
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