Spurs Rookie Victor Wembanyama Honored to Play for 'Intimidating' Gregg Popovich

Gregg Popovich is set to become Victor Wembanyama's first NBA coach with the San Antonio Spurs.

Jeremy Brener | Jun 24, 2023

Spurs Rookie Victor Wembanyama Honored to Play for 'Intimidating' Gregg Popovich /

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San Antonio Spurs

By selecting Victor Wembanyama with the No. 1 overall pick, the next era of San Antonio Spurs basketball has officially begun.

It isn't official that Gregg Popovich will return to the sidelines given that he isn't under contract, but all signs point to the Hall-of-Fame coach coming back for his 28th season with the team.

Given his status as the winningest coach in NBA history, many might find the coach intimidating, even Wembanyama.

"He's not intimidating yet, but I'm sure he's going to get intimidating when I see him in real life," Wembanyama said.

Earlier in the offseason, Wembanyama spoke with a French publication and praised his coach-to-be.

"It would be an honor [to play for Popovich] for sure," Wembanyama said in a French interview. "From what I've heard, he's demanding, but one thing I know for sure is that he's good, and until proven otherwise, he has more experience than I do.

"If I have the chance to be coached by Pop, it will be with a lot of humility and excitement."

Popovich has been rather quiet about his future, but he mentioned earlier in the season that he was still having "fun" coaching the team despite its losing record. Now, with Wembanyama in the fold, one can only imagine how much more fun Popovich would have coaching the team.

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Published Jun 24, 2023

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.