San Antonio Spurs fans have a long history of aggressively booing Kawhi Leonard whenever he takes the court, a tradition that began after he was traded away from the team. However, during a recent game, Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich decided to address this behavior.
On Wednesday night, as Leonard was at the free-throw line, Popovich took matters into his own hands. He grabbed the microphone and urged the home fans to stop booing their former star player.
Wow – Kawhi Leonard was getting booed at the free-throw line by Spurs fans.
Pop all of a sudden grabs announcer’s mic and says: “Can we stop all the bull and let these guys play? that’s not who we are.”pic.twitter.com/dWVOPsHKSGpic.twitter.com/n8a7TqfJ3d
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) November 23, 2023
It’s worth noting that Leonard played a significant role in delivering an NBA championship to San Antonio, earning Finals MVP honors in 2014. However, his departure from the organization was marked by controversy and strained relations.
While booing is a common practice when the opposing team is at the free-throw line, Popovich felt compelled to intervene in this case, signaling that he believed there was more to the story behind the fans’ behavior.