Monday’s announcement of Tim Duncan’s retirement made it very clear that the five-time NBA champion and 15-time All-Star would not be reflecting on his extremely successful career for the benefit of the media. Instead, the San Antonio Spurs planned a Tuesday session with head coach Gregg Popovich to discuss the tenure of the greatest player in franchise history. The plan seemed to fit the always self-effacing Duncan’s demeanor and approach to fame.
Popovich’s meeting with the media on Tuesday proved even less ceremonious than expected. The Spurs’ head coach of 20 seasons has manned the sidelines for all of 64 games without Duncan on the roster and remained marvelously in sync with his star over all these years. So it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that Popovich honored Duncan without many frills at all.
In fact, the event’s only concession to optics was Popovich’s outfit — a Duncan t-shirt paired with khaki shorts in rough approximation of the Big Fundamental’s favored look:
 | @JeffJonesSports | |
Coach Pop comes out in a Tim Duncan T-shirt for today's press conference...AWESOME! pic.twitter.com/v8ayCHxLmC
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Otherwise, Popovich stood on the team’s practice court with no podium, no barrier between him and the media, and no real desire to discuss anything but what Duncan has done for him and the Spurs. He started by explaining why Duncan was not present (all quotes via a full transcript from Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com):
“I’m trying to wrap my head around why I’m standing here and he’s not. And we all know why. It’s not Tim Duncan. We’ve been saying it for 19 years and he really only cared about doing the best job he could basketball-wise and being who he was for his teammates and being somebody who loved his family. That’s really who he is.
“So this is the furthest thing from his mind, so I figured I better come out and do this and somehow say goodbye to him, which is an impossibility for a lot of reasons.
More than anything, Popovich stressed that Duncan was an especially generous teammate and player whose way with people bettered the entire franchise:
“Think about how many people have played with him, and all Tim Duncan has to do is raise one of those arms, right or left, and he puts it on their shoulder and it’s a warmth and a comfort they feel that allows them to become the best possible player they can be. We had a lot of players come through here and be successful and go on to other places just because Tim Duncan created that environment, so that whoever came through here, to be able to develop and create livings for their families and we are all grateful to him.
“It’s not a show of humility in any sense or form. People who grew up with me know me. I would not be standing here if it wasn’t for Tim Duncan. I’d be in the Budweiser League someplace in America, fat and still trying to play basketball or coach basketball. But he’s why I’m standing. He’s made livings for hundreds of us, staff and coaches, over the years and never said a word. Just came to work every day. Came early. Stayed late. Was there for every single person, from the top of the roster to the bottom of the roster because that’s who he was, in all those respects.
“He’s irreplaceable. It can’t happen. We’re all unique — I guess each one of us is unique — but he’s been so important to so many people it’s just mind-boggling. To think that he’s going to be gone makes it really difficult to imagine walking into practice; going to a game; getting on the bus; taking him a piece of carrot cake; whatever it might be.
That description may come as a surprise to those who have seen Duncan as a quiet type with little personality, but it seems clear that his public persona was not representative of his relationship with other members of the Spurs.
If Popovich has his way, though, Duncan will continue to play some role with the franchise, no matter how minor:
“He’s too smart to coach, that’s for sure. I don’t think we’re going to see Timmy going up and down the sidelines much. But I have a notion he will at least listen to being involved, somehow or other, maybe even on a part-time basis. I’m certainly going to hit with everything I have to try to keep him around here as long as I possibly can because he means that much to everyone in the organization.”
There was also a moment of real emotion when Popovich choked up while speaking of a conversation he had with Duncan’s father William before his death in 2002:
 | @JabariJYoung | |
Great moment: Popovich recalling the responsibility he had to make sure Duncan stayed the same. Got emotional #Spurs pic.twitter.com/WzEUYdtmlX
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Popovich touched on other topics in his 15-minute media session, including how the Spurs can replace Duncan’s presence and leadership. It was a fitting tribute — it lacked any real pomp, featured a few snide jokes, and mostly depended on a sincere bond between player and coach. Then again, Popovich wasn’t totally emotional — he ended things with a reference to a time Duncan screwed up:
Question: Any games stick out?
“No, not really. I remember a pretty neat summer league game when he first came in. [Greg] Ostertag blocked his shot. That was pretty cool.”
You can watch the full 15-minute session below:
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