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Stephen Jackson realized he couldn't talk back to Gregg Popovich after seeing how Tim Duncan took it
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- Stephen Jackson realized he couldn't talk back to Gregg Popovich after seeing how Tim Duncan took it
Gregg Popovich yelled at his players. Quite a lot, actually. Stephen Jackson had probably heard about that before his first stint with the San Antonio Spurs. What he may not have known, however, was what lay behind all that yelling.
It, after all, wasn't reserved for some end-of-the-bench guy. Even the team's best player, Tim Duncan , got an earful here and there. That was unusual enough for Jackson. More surprising, as he revealed on a 2020 episode of "All The Smoke," was how The Big Fundamental actually took it.
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Pop never played favorites
Popovich was known for having some temper. Most NBA coaches have that side to them, though. The difference? How they handle it. Some know when to let loose. And when to hold back. Especially around certain players.
Sure, nobody is bigger than the ball club. That's the idea, anyway. In reality, though, coaches know better than to get on the wrong side of a star. Sometimes, they bite their tongue. After all, those players hold a lot of power in the organization.
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Pop, for his part, didn't do it that way. He let everybody have it.
Tony Parker knew that firsthand. The French point guard once recalled a film session. Popovich screamed at him. Kept pushing for a response. He wanted a confrontation.
Parker simply wasn't spared. Sure, he was one of the team's most important players. Still, nobody was off limits.
The Spurs held everyone to the same standard
What does a strong team culture look like? The Spurs had their very own answer. Nobody got special treatment. The same rules applied to everyone. It meant that Popovich expected his players to take the heat when it came their way. Not to throw a tantrum.
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Jackson saw it firsthand. Coming out of games, he'd sit on the bench and watch Popovich go after Duncan. It was like Timmy was just another guy, really, and Stak couldn't wrap his head around it.
He was baffled that a soon-to-be two-time MVP would let anybody talk to him that way. However, once he saw how Duncan never fired back, it finally clicked.
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Quiet strength
Duncan has always been described as a pretty quiet guy. In this case, his silence showed just how effective it could be.
Jackson wasn't exactly the type to hold anything back. That said, his first instinct whenever Pop came at him was to tell his coach to get right out of his face. However, his attitude changed when he looked down the bench and saw how Duncan handled it all.
It hit the 1996 McDonald's All-American right there and then. If the best player on the team could take it, what was his excuse for not doing the same? There simply wasn't one.
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"So, when Pop come to me, I got to be like, 'What the [expletive] can I say? Tim Duncan taking it. I gotta take it,'" Jackson said .
It taught him that sometimes, keeping your mouth shut was the right move. That wasn't weakness. It showed strength and sent a message to the rest of the team, too. Cap'n Jack got something else out of it. The 2003 NBA champ would go on to spend several more years in the league, having become more "coachable."
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Oct 13, 2026, where it first appeared in the Old School section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
