Gregg Popovich is the most winning coach in NBA history, with 1,422 regular-season wins.
The Spurs have been one of the league’s most consistent and successful franchises since joining the NBA in the 1976-77 season. Hoops fans are keenly aware of Gregg Popovich’s legendary tenure as the team’s coach, but this article also spotlights some of the other great coaches in franchise history.
Gregg Popovich – 2,214 games (1996-2025)
Popovich is not only the longest-tenured and most successful head coach in Spurs history, but he’s also one of the winningest head coaches in the history of The Association. He transformed the Spurs entirely and made them a perennial contender in the Western Conference, first with the David Robinson – Tim Duncan duo and later with the Big Three of Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. Popovich not only posted a 1390-824 record with the Spurs in the regular season, but he also led the franchise to 22 playoff appearances, six Western Conference Championships and five NBA Finals wins (1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2014).
Doug Moe – 312 games (1976-1980)
Moe is one of two head coaches who reached the 300-game plateau with the Spurs, and he was their head coach for four straight seasons between the 1976-77 and 1979-80 campaigns, which ushered in San Antonio’s first years in the NBA. Moe had his best season as the Spurs’ head coach in 1977-78, leading the team to a 52-30 record, but it’s worth noting the Spurs always posted a winning record above .500 with him at the helm. Overall, Moe went 177-135 in his four years in San Antonio.
Larry Brown – 284 games (1988-1992)
Brown is a true basketball lifer and coaching legend, having spent time with several franchises, and he was the Spurs’ head coach for four seasons between 1988 and 1992. Even though his first year was a disappointment (21-61), he led San Antonio to back-to-back seasons with at least 55 wins in each of the subsequent two campaigns. He went 21-17 in his final season in charge of the Spurs before leaving the organization. Brown would end the 1991-92 campaign as the head coach of the Los Angeles Clippers.
Bob Bass – 251 games (1974-76, 1979-80, 1983-1992)
Bass is one of four head coaches who coached the Spurs for more than 250 regular-season games, though he did it in a unique fashion across multiple tenures. His first game as a head coach in San Antonio was in the 1974-75 season, and the last one was in the 1991-92 campaign. Bass had a winning percentage of at least .500 in each of the five seasons he coached the Spurs. His best season was the 1975-76 campaign, where he posted a 50-34 record in the Spurs’ final ABA season.
Stan Albeck – 246 games (1980-1983)
Albeck was an NBA head coach for eight years, and he spent three of those seasons with the Spurs between the 1980-81 and 1982-83 seasons. He was successful during his three-year tenure in San Antonio. He posted a winning record and reached the playoffs each time, and in two of those seasons, he even surpassed the 50-win plateau. His Spurs made it to the Western Conference Finals twice under his direction. Albeck went 153-93 in the regular season with the Spurs, good for a .622 winning percentage.
