Out of all the incredible basketball minds operating as NBA head coaches today, no one has a track record that even comes close to that of Gregg Popovich. With over 4 decades of coaching experience at various levels, Popovich is one of the most illustrious head coaches in NBA history.
That being said, the beginning of this season has seen the Spurs and Popovich in an unfamiliar position. Though their 11-7 record indicates a solid start, it’s on the injury front where Popovich claims he’s never encountered an issue similar to the nagging quad of superstar Kawhi Leonard. Following from ESPN’s Michael C. Wright:
San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said he has “never” encountered the quadriceps issue that has kept Kawhi Leonard out of the lineup this entire season.
“Never, never,” Popovich said when asked whether he has seen such a condition hampering one of his players. “What’s really strange is that [point guard] Tony [Parker] has the same injury, but even worse. They had to go operate on his quad tendon and put it back together or whatever they did to it. So to have two guys, that’s pretty incredible. I had never seen it before those guys.”
With over 40 years of coaching experience, you eventually see almost everything the game has to offer but according to Popovich, this time is different. Leonard’s injury, diagnosed as quadriceps tendinopathy has been concerning, to say the least as he has yet to suit up once this season and his return still seems to be weeks away.
When the injury was first sustained, it wasn’t expected to be as serious as it’s proven to be. We are now pushing the quarter mark of the campaign and though the Spurs have survived without him in the lineup, his presence is requisite if the Spurs want any hope of making another trademark championship run.
Based on Popovich’s latest comments, it’s clear San Antonio still has major concerns regarding the health of their two-way star moving forward. With such an unpredictable injury, it still remains unclear as to when Leonard and teammate Tony Parker will make their eventual returns.
