Many in the basketball community believe that Gregg Popovich’s recent praise of LeBron James may not have been entirely altruistic in its purposes.
Former ESPN personality Ryen Russillo reported on Monday that there are “a lot of NBA people” who think that the San Antonio Spurs head coach’s kind words for James were a part of recruiting him to the team this summer.
There are a lot of NBA people that appreciate what Pop has to say about LeBron…but they also think it’s part of recruiting him this offseason.
— Russillo (@ryenarussillo) February 26, 2018
Indeed, Popovich heaped the praise on the four-time MVP before the Spurs played the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday. James also had a very positive reaction, calling the three-time Coach of the Year one of his “favorite people.”
Just asked LeBron about being compared to Black Panther by Pop. As usual, the love is mutual. “Pop is definitely one of my favorite people I’ve ever come across in my life.”
— Mike Finger (@mikefinger) February 25, 2018
James can, of course, become a free agent after the season, and we know that the Spurs fit the profile of what he would want out of a new team. As such, it makes perfect sense that Popovich, one of the shrewdest minds in the game, would shoot his shot here.
