Photos by Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images
During Wednesday’s game between the Los Angeles Clippers and San Antonio Spurs, a bizarre moment occurred when Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich got on the mic and told fans in attendance at Frost Bank Center to stop booing Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard.
While many initially believed that Popovich was trying to stand up for his former player, he succinctly explained after the game that he simply was warning fans not to “poke the bear.”
Bally Sports San Antonio @BallySportsSA
“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
Bleacher Report @BleacherReport
Coach Pop grabs the mic mid-game to tell the crowd ‘stop booing’ at Kawhi 😳 pic.twitter.com/ckvZduDdut
Popovich may have had a point, as Leonard scored a game-high 26 points to lead the Clippers to a 109-102 victory. However, fans continued to boo him each time he touched the ball.
For his part, Leonard said he didn’t even realize it was Popovich on the mic:
Farbod Esnaashari @Farbod_E
Kawhi Leonard on Poppovich telling fans not to boo him: “I was focused. I didn’t know if it was him or not… They’re a very classy organization, and I’m pretty sure he wants to keep it that way.”
Leonard began his career in San Antonio, helping to lead the team to an NBA championship in 2014. He later requested to be traded from the Spurs and landed with the Toronto Raptors, where he won his second title in 2019.
Fans in San Antonio could be tired of Leonard being on the opposing side, as he improved to 11-3 against the Spurs since he departed the team.
