Gregg Popovich on Brad Stevens: 'He's a special person, on and off the court'

Gregg Popovich is in a class of his own when it comes to NBA head coaches. He has amassed 1,154 career wins in his career, putting him on the verge of posting the fifth most wins for a head coach in league history.

Brad Stevens (170 career wins) has a long way to go to be considered in the same company as a guy like Popovich as far as his resume goes. However, if you listen to the Spurs head coach talk about Stevens, one would think the 41-year-old will achieve that kind of success sooner rather than later. 

"He is a special person, on and off the court," Popovich said of Stevens before Monday's game. "He's very intelligent and intelligence is fine, but if it doesn't come along with incisiveness, judgment, and an emotional maturity, it doesn't do you much good. He has all of those things and that's large. Not that many people have that. It shows in the way he handles people and the way he coaches. He's going to be a great one before it's all over with and he's already a hell of a coach."

Aron Baynes has only played for Stevens for six games after spending three years in San Antonio, but he already sees the similarities between both coaches.

"They both understand the game really well, they have their Xs and Os on point, but they also understand the players and put the players in the right situation," he said.

Stevens had only nice things to say about Popovich when informed about his comments.

“It’s flattering obviously," Stevens said. "He’s nice to the media. And I think he’s nice to us. He’s a great role model for our profession. He’s a guy that’s a basketball coach, but he’s not defined as a basketball coach. He’s got a lot of other interests. He does a lot of good things in the community. And he’s always open to helping other coaches. So I can’t say enough good things about him. I think he’s at the top of the profession.”