Gregg Popovich may no longer be pacing the sidelines, but his shadow still stretches across San Antonio. For 29 seasons, he was the [Spurs](https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nba/san-antonio-spurs). The man was a mix of old-school discipline, dry humor, and unfiltered honesty that turned a small-market franchise into a global model of consistency. Five championships. Three Coach of the Year awards. One unmistakable legacy.
Lenny Wilkens, himself a Hall of Famer and one of the few to know what 1,300 wins feels like, didn’t mince words when reflecting on Popovich’s exit. “He’s going to be missed. He’s one of the greatest to do it,” Wilkens told Sporting News. Asked if anyone might ever catch him, he added, “It’s going to be a long time before someone breaks that record.”
He’s right. Erik Spoelstra, the longest-tenured coach in the Eastern Conference and architect of Miami’s modern era, has racked up 860 combined regular season and playoff victories. That’s still 700 shy of Popovich’s towering total of 1,560.
Now the whistle passes to Mitch Johnson — a 36-year-old lifer within the organization who inherits both opportunity and expectation. When a legend leaves, the cupboard is often bare. Not here. Assuming Victor Wembanyama returns to form and the young guard corps finds rhythm, San Antonio could end its six-year postseason drought.
### More: [5 key storylines for the Rockets](https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nba/houston-rockets/news/five-key-storylines-houston-rockets-season/567b2ae9c33127710a57c735)
Popovich may not be on the bench anymore, but his fingerprints remain on every inch of the Spurs’ foundation. It’s a culture built on humility, accountability, and the unspoken belief that doing things the right way still matters.
Former NBA player and current broadcaster Greg Anthony offered this perspective to the Sporting News. “I would be shocked if they don’t make the playoffs! The post ‘Pop’ era will be different but no reason to think that the Spurs won’t be contending moving forward. Wemby is different!”
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