San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich scolded his home fans for booing Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard on Wednesday night, as former the Spurs star was jeered while shooting free throws.
“Excuse me for a second. Can we stop all the booing and let these guys play?” Popovich said after rushing to a courtside microphone. “It’s got no class. It’s not who we are. Knock off the booing.”
Leonard – who won a championship with the Spurs in 2014, but left the team somewhat acrimoniously in the summer of 2018 – was booed by the home crowd as he stepped to the line in the second quarter. Despite Popovich’s intervention, the hostility continued throughout the evening.
Not that the booing helped the Spurs’ cause: San Antonio fell to its 12th defeat of the season – and 10th in a row – in the 109-102 loss to the Clippers and, adding insult to injury, Leonard wound up as the game’s leading scorer, racking up 26 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals on the night.
“Anybody who knows anything about sports knows you don’t poke the bear,” Popovich said after the game.
“If I don’t have a Spurs jersey on, they’re probably going to boo me the rest of my career,” Leonard conceded postgame. “But I mean, it is what it is. Like I said, they’re one of the best fans in the league and they’re very competitive. Once I step out on this basketball court out here, they show that they’re going for the other side.”
But his Spurs tenure is still a fond memory for fans away from the court: “When I’m on the streets or going into restaurants, they show love. So it is what it is.”
On the positive end of things for the Spurs, lauded San Antonio rookie Victor Wembanyama had a big night with 22 points, 14 rebounds and three blocks to continue his solid debut season in the NBA.
San Antonio falls to 3-12 on the year, while the Clippers won their third straight game to move to 6-7.