There’s a lot of news surrounding the San Antonio Spurs, and none of it is particularly positive.
Gregg Popovich remains out of the team indefinitely due to an undisclosed health issue. However, longtime San Antonio News Express columnist Mike Finger tweeted a different light on the situation.
Something we’ve tried to convey in our coverage of the Popovich story is that this is being handled very differently than his previous one- or two-game absences.
Still very unknown, the Spurs keeping a very tight circle. It would probably be wise not to take a quick return for granted.
-Mike Finger (@mikefinger) November 5, 2024
ESPN’s Shams Charania echoed that sentiment, saying on NBA Today: “There’s a great level of concern around the situation.”
Spurs assistant coach Mitch Johnson has been named interim head coach, a position he will hold indefinitely until Popovich is healthy enough to return. The worry now is that the return could be far away.
San Antonio will also be without forward Jeremy Sochan for likely a few months as he is set to undergo surgery to repair a broken thumb suffered against the Clippers on Monday night. News the surgery was necessary was broken by ESPN’s Charania. Although the team gave no time frame for a return, Jeff Stotts of In Street Clothes – with his extensive database of past injuries – predicts close to two months.
Re: Jeremy Sochan: The thumb is made up of two bones, the proximal and distal phalanges. The proximal is closer to the base of the thumb and is part of the MCP joint. The average time lost for thumb fractures requiring surgery is approximately 21 games (~52 days).
– Jeff Stotts (@InStreetClothes) November 5, 2024
Sochan took a step forward statistically this season averaging 15.4 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3 assists per game. However, he has yet to fully integrate Victor Wembanyama, both via the eye test and statistically Spurs have a -2 net rating when the two are on the court together (to be fair, that’s about the same as the team’s -2.6 net rating). overall rating this season, statistics via Clean the glass).
