Popovich passes George Karl for 5th on all-time wins leaderboard
Gregg Popovich will finish his career in the top five of the league's winningest coaches.
The San Antonio Spurs bench boss earned the 1,176th victory of his career Tuesday with a 100-91 win over the New York Knicks, vaulting him past George Karl for fifth all-time on the NBA coaching wins leaderboard.
Congrats to @spurs Coach Gregg Popovich for moving up to 5th on the NBA’s ALL-TIME COACHING WINS list! pic.twitter.com/MlDTX5ZtK5
— NBA (@NBA) January 3, 2018
When notified of his milestone postgame, Popovich responded to the discovery in true Popovich fashion.
"I don't remember scoring any points or getting any rebounds," he said, according to Sports Illustrated's Kenny Ducey.
Popovich won't be able to catch Jerry Sloan to finish in the top three by the end of this season, though he does have a faint chance at surpassing Pat Riley for fourth. However, he would have to go no worse than 34-10 the rest of the way in order to catch the former Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, and Miami Heat coach.