Not sure why folks on social media are getting butthurt over Gregg Popovich telling fans to knock off obnoxious behavior. During Wednesday’s Clippers-Spurs matchup, ex-San Antonio star Kawhi Leoanrd was at the free throw line when fans erupted in a chorus of boos.
Popovich didn’t take too kindly to that. He took the live hot mic and told those in attendance at Frost Bank Center that such actions are not what the franchise stands for:
Wow. #Spurs HC Gregg Popovich just grabbed the arena microphone with Kawhi Leonard at the free throw line, and asked the crowd to stop booing.
Fans have been booing Leonard, who asked to be traded from San Antonio, on every touch.
Not sure I've seen that in an NBA game. pic.twitter.com/PHk3yD2IHG
— Nate Ryan (@nateryansports) November 23, 2023
"Anybody that knows anything about sports. You don't poke the bear."
Coach Gregg Popovich explains why he took the mic and told the fans to stop booing Kawhi.@spurs | #PorVida | 📺:BSSW pic.twitter.com/inUUTzfqS8
— Bally Sports San Antonio (@BallySportsSA) November 23, 2023
Yo San Antonio, why exactly are you booing Kawhi Leonard? You bunch of ingrates! It’s Thanksgiving for crying out loud. Be thankful for the good times. Are you grumpy that your team sucks again and is 3-12? Maybe that’s it…
It’d be one thing if Kawhi tanked the Spurs dynasty by requesting a trade, but the guy gave those fans an NBA Finals MVP and another season when he was Defensive Player of the Year. To me, Kawhi saw a sinking ship and an antiquated-thinking organization who was stuck in its ways and seemingly mismanaged his injury situation. He wanted to get the hell out. To his credit, he did.
Lo and behold, Kawhi gets traded to Toronto and promptly delivers the Raptors’ first-ever NBA championship. Kawhi’s time with the Clippers has been marred by injury and, you know, their toxic culture.
But like…what exactly do Spurs fans have to boo about? Chill out. Y’all just got bailed out by “winning” the totally not-rigged NBA Draft lottery and lucking your way into Victor Wembanyama. Had Kawhi never left town, you’d have never been in that position. You’d be akin to the Russell Westbrook-led Thunder once Kevin Durant and James Harden left.
That didn’t stop the keyboard warriors from coming out en masse to blast Popovich for being, like, IDK…woke? Too sensitive? A sissy? You can find any number of insults against the legendary coach.
And yes, I can hold two truths at the same time: “legendary coach” and “the modern game has passed him by since Kawhi Leonard left town, a la Bill Belichick post-Tom Brady.”
The softest moment in the history of sports. pic.twitter.com/uZLkumbKTO
— Tommy Lugauer (@tommylugauer) November 23, 2023
Its time for Popovich to retire
— Frank Fleming (@NjTank99) November 23, 2023
Popovich is such a hypocrite. “Don’t boo Kawhi. It’s not classy. You’re better than that.
But anyways, now I’m gonna give rude answers to reporters, not let them finish their sentences and be a condescending know-it-all jerk because I can.”
The sense of entitlement is wild. pic.twitter.com/MdyHoqQlKr
— Robert C Buford (@SirRobertBuford) November 23, 2023
In one of the most embarrassing moments in sports, Gregg Popovich grabs the mic and asks the crowd to be nice. 🫠
— Joe Cozzo (@JoeCozzo) November 23, 2023
Popovich is out of line here. Fans pay good money to attend games and can boo and cheer for whoever they want. https://t.co/93tPZzxru1
— Joe Osborne (@JTFOz) November 23, 2023
Popovich is the toughest sissy on earth if that makes any sense. What a virtue signaling, narcissistic, sissified jackass ! I can’t stand that dude. I may drive down to San Antonio to sit behind his bench and just BOO him the entire game. https://t.co/Gfu7An3jol
— KIP HENLEY (@KipHenley) November 23, 2023
Popovich doubling down on being a dick as he says you don’t poke the bear ..entitled pos then he explains with no rational explanation.. #GamblingTwiiter FANS PAY YOU SON
— Mike North (@North2North) November 23, 2023
Oh, get the hell out of here. Popovich is rude and nasty to reporters, who are just doing their job, on a nightly basis. He’s gonna scold paying customers, who are being “rude” to a guy who quit on them? His act is tired. https://t.co/oPtAraRNxY
— Jonathan Zaslow (@ZaslowShow) November 23, 2023
Popovich is the worst 🤣
If he can be the main character, you can believe he will.
pic.twitter.com/D6a02SLvDP— Chris Manno (@Mann_O_Steel17) November 23, 2023
This is ridiculous by Popovich. He’s not running a college program. Pro players all understand booing is part of the game. https://t.co/nUsjmN7Cjx
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) November 23, 2023
It’s pretty funny to see quite a few media types come out and express their dismay over Popovich’s antics. I feel like once you win five NBA championships, you can pretty much do whatever you want when you meet with the media.
Popovich is fully aware he’s being a douche canoe when he holds court with reporters. If you go into that scenario expecting anything different, that’s on you at this point. What’s there to report about this Spurs team, by the way, other than Wemby’s development? The rest of the roster is absolute cheeks. What’s been worth reporting on prior to his arrival? Not much… so who cares?
I thought the night before Thanksgiving people were supposed to be out doing fun things with friends instead of getting butthurt on Twitter. I mean X (thanks, Elon). Guess I was wrong. At least somebody was on my same track with the Popovich-Belichick analogy.
Bill Belichick and Gregg Popovich in 2023. pic.twitter.com/GCXhptDSbi
— Thomas Carrieri (@Thomas_Carrieri) November 23, 2023
