“I don’t think I can coach him”ー Gregg Popovich admits struggling to contain Manu Ginobili’s unpredictable style of play

Manu Ginobili and Gregg Popovich had the utmost respect for each other, but that wasn't the case initially. Pop's old-school approach wanted to put Ginobili's stallion-like ways in a box; meanwhile, Manu wants more freedom with the basketball. Believe it or not, the Hall of Fame coach was almost the first one to blink.

Mike Budenholzer, now the head coach of the Phoenix Suns and a long-time assistant under Popovich, recalls how the multi-titled coach nearly lost hope of finding common ground with the left-handed shooting guard.

"I don't think I can coach him," Pop confessed to Budenholzer, per ESPN's Zach Lowe.

Why Gregg Popovich thought Manu is uncoachable

Ginobili did not physically butt heads with Pop, nor did they exchange words. The problem was that the multi-titled coach wanted to play structured basketball, predicated on Tim Duncan's post-ups. From there, Pop wanted Ginobili and the others to line up and be ready to spot up or stand in the corner to provide spacing.

"I was so stubborn," Popovich admitted. "I had to rein him in. 'Oh, you can't turn it over. You can't shoot those shots.' All that purist bulls---."

Coaching Manu that way was a disservice to his game. The "Seven Seconds or Less" Phoenix Suns made it fashionable to shoot threes early in the shot clock; Ginobili already had that in his bag before. He made risky passes, "nutmegs" in basketball slang, and gambled for steals. These drove Pop mad, and his efforts to rein in Manu exasperated the latter.

"I was so frustrated that first year, waiting in the corner," Ginobili said. "I wanted the ball, to make decisions. I was 25, and I wanted to take the world by storm. I thought I knew everything."

Ginobili only knew one way to play and never changed his daredevil ways. Popovich told him not to try a fastbreak pass that resulted in a turnover ever again, but he did the very next game. This time around, Manu pulled it off successfully, and the bench went crazy. Ultimately, Pop relented.

"You realized there was more positive than negative," Popovich said. "He's a freaking winner. I came to the conclusion that it had to be more his way than my way."

Never changed

Ginobili always played hard, and his risks were more calculated than they initially looked. In a September scrimmage, he would dive for the ball amidst three defenders, leaving Pop shaking his head. Countless times, Manu would lunge and gamble on passing lanes, and everybody realized it was because he read the game faster than the rest.

"He just gave himself permission to play how he wanted," Duncan recalled laughing. "He beat us into submission. Pop would be pulling his hair out, but eventually, we all saw Manu was steps ahead of everyone else."

In the end, Ginobili won everybody, and the Spurs were glad they did. Sometimes, the best play is trusting the chaos, especially if "chaos" is named Manu Ginobili.

Related: "It broke my heart to play against him at the Olympics" - A.I. believed Manu would've been one of his best teammates