Head coach Gregg Popovich and the San Antonio Spurs have built one of the most decorated dynasties in not only basketball but all of sports. Since Popovich took over the Spurs top coaching position over two decades ago, the team has enjoyed nothing but paramount success including taking home the Larry O’Brien championship trophy five times over that span.
While legendary big man David Robinson was a huge part of San Antonio’s 1999 championship run, the pillars of success for this historic chapter in Spurs history have been Manu Ginobili, Tim Duncan, and Tony Parker. Duncan decided to call it quits at the conclusion of last season, a decision that must have been a tough pill to swallow for Coach Pop and anyone else involved in the Spurs organization.
With Duncan already gone, Ginobili’s playing days are expected to be also dwindling though we haven’t heard anything recent on his retirement. While we’ve seen the role of Tony Parker begin to be reduced, it’s safe to assume his retirement won’t come for at least a couple more years. At the unforgiving age of 39, Ginobili has been forced to change his game and is subject to plenty of healthy scratches from the rotation to ensure he keeps his key role of 6th man in the playoffs.
Even with Ginobili’s aging body and the emergence of other worthy bench options such as guards Jonathon Simmons and Patty Mills, Popovich still wants to ensure his long-time shooting guard has the longest career possible. Following from Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post:
Pop on Manu: "I don't want him to ever retire. I'm gonna squeeze every last ounce of juice out of him. I'm gonna use him like a bar of soap"
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) March 29, 2017
While the choice of words from the legendary coach may be worthy of a quick pause, it’s clear the point Popovich is trying to get across here. With Duncan now gone, the veteran savvy that Manu Ginobili brings to the table is irreplaceable even if his game continues to slow down. With Popovich determined to extend Ginobili’s career as much as possible, look for Pop to continue managing how much action the Argentinian gets.
