Open Thread: Happy birthday, Pop

He may be older than the two oldest Spurs combined (Doug McDermott and Josh Richardson). He may also be older than the three youngest and newest members of the Silver & Black (Blake Wesley, Malakai Branham, and Jeremy Sochan) — all born in Spring of 2003), but the breadth of basketball knowledge contained in Gregg Popovich’s pinky finger far surpasses any ten players currently in the NBA.

A list of accolades seems redundant for anyone who reads Pounding the Rock with regularity.

You can love him or hate him. Whether you agree with his politics or are a card-carrying member of “shut up and coach” club.

The San Antonio Spurs would not be the San Antonio Spurs without him. The culture of the team, the relationships, the championships, the team-first mentality, his treatment of players, development of coaches, even the city would not be the same without him. And for that, we should all be grateful.

Happy birthday, Pop. We love you.

What’s your favorite “Pop” moment, on or off the court?

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