Gregg Popovich didn’t need a speech to sway the Spurs after their Game 3 loss. In the locker room, De’Aaron Fox said Popovich delivered “choice words,” a moment Fox described as the first of its kind all season—and it came right before San Antonio rolled the T
The Spurs didn’t just bounce back—they did it loudly. turning a painful Game 3 into a blowout that snapped their Western Conference Finals back into a tie. After being outscored in Game 3. they laid down a 103–82 statement against the Oklahoma City Thunder on May 24 to even the series at 2–2 on Sunday night.
San Antonio’s surge had a personal moment attached to it. De’Aaron Fox said former coach Gregg Popovich walked into the locker room after the Spurs’ 123–108 Game 3 loss on Friday. May 22. and delivered “choice words.” Fox described it as the first time this season that Popovich came into the team’s locker room right after a game and told them directly what he felt.
“Pop’s been around, like throughout the course of the season, but that was the first time he walked into the locker room, and it was like, ‘Nah, that’s B.S. That’s not how we play basketball.’” Fox said during an interview on NBC’s postgame show.
Fox said Popovich didn’t mince words—and that everyone in the room felt the impact. “Obviously, he had some choice words for us. That was the first time all season that he came into the locker room right after a game and told us how he felt. And everybody felt that.”
Fox didn’t offer specifics on the exact message. but he emphasized how unusual the moment felt inside the Spurs’ building. “You know how it is after a game, and that’s the first time I’ve ever seen that,” Fox said. “You know trainers, everybody’s in there. We close the doors and we don’t let anybody know what’s going on in there. But that’s the first time he opened the door, we see Pop come in and it’s like ‘Aaahhh’ …”.
Popovich, the Spurs’ president of basketball operations, retired from coaching last year after suffering a stroke during the 2024–25 season. Even out of the coaching role, the account Fox gave made clear that his presence carried weight—especially when it arrived immediately after a loss.
The sequence between the two games is stark: Game 3 ended with San Antonio falling 123–108, and then 24 hours later the Spurs dominated the Thunder 103–82. In that narrow window, Fox pointed to a locker-room confrontation as the spark that shifted the mood when the doors were supposed to stay shut.
With the Spurs leveling the series. the Western Conference Finals are set for another charged stretch. with the matchup now squared up at 2–2. The Thunder and Spurs now head deeper into the heat of the postseason. with Victor Wembanyama’s performances continuing to anchor a battle that’s become as emotional as it is tactical.
Spurs Thunder Game 4 Gregg Popovich De'Aaron Fox Western Conference Finals Victor Wembanyama