Gregg Popovich has never been shy about toeing the line of controversy. The San Antonio Spurs coach has always shared his opinions on political matters in the United States and as unrest has struck the nation, he’s been one of the more notable figures to make his voice heard in the sports world.
That’s why it comes as no surprise that Popovich spent the final 10 minutes of his pre-game presser going after politicians and legislators in the country regarding their response to the mass shooting that occurred in Nashville last month, which left six dead. Popovich called out several Republican members of Congress, including Jim Jordan, Lindsey Graham and Marsha Blackburn.
“Can they imagine that happening to [their kids]? Popovich questioned. “Are they incapable of knowing what that’s like? I couldn’t believe this, I wrote this thing down. Senator Marsha Blackburn, her comment after the massacre, ‘My office is in contact with federal, state and local officials, and we stand ready to assist.’ In what? They’re dead. What are you gonna assist with? Cleaning up their brains off the wall? Wiping the blood off the schoolroom floor? What are you going to assist with?”
Popovich then took Tennessee Governor Bill Lee to task before talking about the concerns he has for his grandchildren.
“When I pick up my six and 11-year-old grandkids from school when I’m here at home, on the way, it goes through my mind that I hope they’re gonna be OK,” Popovich said via Brad Townsend of the San Antonio Express-News. “Most of you in this room [referencing to reporters] when you were in school, we worried if Nancy would dance with us on Friday after the football game, or something. That was our anxiety. They’re gonna cloak all this stuff, the myth of the second amendment…It’s a myth. It’s a joke. It’s a game they play. That’s freedom. Is it freedom for kids to go to school and try to socialize and try to learn and be scared to death that they may die that day?”
Popovich continued by calling out what he perceives as the “cowardice” and the “selfishness” of the legislators.
It’s clear that Gregg Popovich feels very impassioned by this issue and spent what’s likely his final pregame availability of the season talking about gun control or lack thereof in the United States.
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.