ORLANDO – When the Spurs took the court in Orlando for their first NBA scrimmage Thursday afternoon, head coach Gregg Popovich was not the one calling the shots.
Instead, as the NBA’s oldest active head coach donned a mask and rode the bench, as assistant coach Becky Hammon assumed head coaching duties against the Milwaukee Bucks. Hammon did not wear a mask. This is part of San Antonio’s plan to rotate coaches throughout the scrimmage schedule. Mitch Johnson will lead the team on Saturday against the Nets, while Will Hardy takes charge on Tuesday against the Pacers.
Becky Hammon coaching the Spurs today with Pop on the bench 📝 pic.twitter.com/ksSADvzrCA
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) July 23, 2020
In the meantime, the Spurs came up short in their first test inside the NBA bubble. After a first quarter stalemate, Milwaukee outscored San Antonio by 18 combined points in the second and third quarters to secure a convincing 113-92 victory.
Lonnie Walker IV led the Spurs with 14 points in 24 minutes. Derrick White (11), Dejounte Murray (13) and Keldon Johnson (11) all finished in double figures. Reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo tallied 22 points in 21 minutes to pace the Bucks.
San Antonio will return to action on Saturday, July 25 against Brooklyn at 3:30 p.m.
First bucket back comes courtesy of @Dwhite921 👌#GoSpursGo pic.twitter.com/Q7wnV2fTwo
— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) July 23, 2020