SAN ANTONIO – The San Antonio Spurs have officially announced that Head Coach Gregg Popovich suffered a mild stroke on November 2 at the Frost Bank Center. According to the organization, Coach Pop has started a rehabilitation program and is expected to make a full recovery. However, the timetable for his return to coaching duties remains uncertain.

Some believe Popovich coached his last NBA game. He is 75 years old and a stroke, whether mild or otherwise, is still a very, very serious medical situation. The San Antonio Express-News says the organization assumes Mitch Johnson will be the team’s head coach until at least the new year.

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Spurs General Manager Brian Wright spoke to the media on Wednesday before the team took on the Washington Wizards.

“First and foremost, you know, our thoughts and prayers are with Coach Pop and his family. It’s a difficult time for everyone,” Wright said. “When we walk into the building every day, we feel that leadership, we feel that presence, and so not having him, there’s obviously a void, and we miss him. At the same time, I’m extremely proud of the team, the team is made up of the players, the staff and everyone who’s bonded together through a difficult time, and it’s exactly what Coach Pop would want us to do, and so, you know. It’s up to all of us to play our part, play our part, continue to lean on each other, support each other and be there for each other, and we look forward to the day when we can welcome him back, but, you know , it takes a village, and we’re all for that, but the most important thing is that we want to make sure that he has everything he needs and that we give him the time and space to continue to recover, and we’re looking at it out to get him back.”

When asked why the Spurs decided to release more information than they currently had about Popovich’s medical condition, Wright said the team felt it was best to have time to process the situation.

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“In these situations it is important to have time to understand exactly what is going on, and over time you can talk about things transparently and give an update on where we are, and because we had time to get information record, it was the right time to share with everyone where we are and what’s going on, and time allowed for that.”

Wright wouldn’t go into details about why the Spurs decided to hand coaching duties to interim coach Mitch Johnson instead of someone like Brett Brown, who has more head coaching experience in the league, although he did say the entire coaching group has done. did a great job.

“I think Mitch has done it, and the whole staff has done a phenomenal job of continuing to move forward, continuing to execute Pop’s vision for the team and how we want to play, and we’re playing well in these moments, and so Brett did that too. He has great business knowledge of what we do, why we do it and how we do it, and the standards we have to work with, and he has provided excellent support and assistance to Mitch and the staff. They have done a great job of continuing to execute on what Pop has asked this team to do from the beginning of the season until now.

Wright also would not comment on the medical part of the situation, but said the team was grateful for everyone involved in the medical emergency and helping Coach Popovich, who was part of it.

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At least one doctor, a specialist who focuses on strokes and the diagnosis and minimally invasive treatment of conditions affecting the brain, spine and head and neck region, believes any return to coaching will prove to be a complicated road for Popovich are.

Doctor Eduardo Murias, PhD NRXI previously reported the situation with Spanish sports site @PlanetaNBA and offered opinions derived from the limited information released by Spurs earlier today.

“A stroke is a sudden neurological defect, which means that you suddenly become unable to move an arm, a leg or speak. It means that part of the brain no longer functions, causing you to no longer do certain things. It is not that the entire brain stops working, as in the case of a coma or epilepsy, but rather only part of the brain. So when this happens, there are two reasons. Possible etiologies,” explains Murias.

“One is a cerebral bleed in one part of the brain that causes that area to stop functioning, and another is ischemic, where an artery becomes blocked and cuts off the blood supply to an area, causing it to stop functioning.”

Murias says the implications of whether it is ischemic or hemorrhagic vary widely and would determine the treatment approach and outlook.

“Hemorrhagic stroke due to cerebral hemorrhage has a mortality rate of more than 25% to 30%, and more than half of survivors often end up with some form of dependence. Therefore, when it comes to what we call a cerebral hemorrhage or what is commonly called a cerebral hemorrhage, which is a cerebral hemorrhage, then the chance of return to normal function, return to its normal state is quite complicated, or at least very unlikely. that he can coach again, especially if it is on the left side, and it affects his language, both comprehension and speech.”

Doctor Murias believes that because the team’s official press release indicates a process of rehabilitation, this points to the fact that the stroke, even if mild, was not the result of a blood clotting ischemic or ‘mini- stroke’.

“Most likely, this means they will need speech therapy or functional rehabilitation. If it is an ischemic stroke, the chance of recovery is greater. And if he still wants to continue coaching, that could be possible. In the event of an acute neurological event, such as a stroke, the chances of anyone returning to their lives, especially as an NBA coach, are very slim. It’s complicated because we’re talking about everything related to stress and things like that.”

The doctor adds that it would be difficult for any doctor to recommend that he return to a state where he could be stressed or nervous again. The condition requires treatment, and sometimes treatment gets worse when you are stressed or under a lot of pressure, the specialist says.

Dr. Murias believes doctors treating Popovich will likely recommend rest, especially because a stroke that affects the brain is much worse than a stroke that affects the heart.

Although Brian Wright and the Spurs have decided not to discuss any further medical details, he and others say the organization greatly appreciates Popovich and that he is in their prayers. “I don’t know of anyone else who means that much to any other organization, sport or non-sport, and he’s more than a coach,” Wright said.

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