Gregg Popovich named NBA Coach of the Year

Gregg Popovich was named NBA Coach of the Year for the second time in his career Tuesday, garnering 77 of a possible 119 first place votes.

Popovich, in his 16th year as head coach, guided the supposedly over-the-hill, shorthanded Spurs to a 50-16 record, tied for the best in the league.

For much of the year, the Spurs were without guard Manu Ginobili, the team's second-leading scorer last year.

Tony Parker stepped up in Ginobili's absence, averaging 18.3 points and 7.7 assists per game. But the mark of Popovich's team was the incredible depth: Eight players averaged in double digits for San Antonio, including Danny Green, Tiago Splitter, DeJuan Blair, Gary Neal, Patrick Mills, Ginobili, Tim Duncan, and Parker.

Perhaps most impressive was the Spurs' bouncing back from last year's ugly defeat in the first round of the playoffs. Seeded first in the West, San Antonio was bounced in six games by the Grizzlies.

San Antonio, the No. 1 seed in the West, entered this postseason as the league's hottest team. The Spurs finished 24-3 in their last 27 games, and won their final 10 regular season games despite resting several key starters.

Popovich added 24 second-place votes and 10 third-place votes to his 77 first-place votes, giving him 467 points. Tom Thibodeau finished second in the voting with 27 first-place votes and 315 total points; Frank Vogel was third with seven first-place votes and 161 total points.

Popovich was also named Coach of the Year in 2002-03. Coincidentally, that was the last time the Coach of the Year's team won an NBA Championship, the 60-22 Spurs beating the Nets in six games in the NBA Finals. The winners since:

2003-04: Hubie Brown, Memphis Grizzlies
2004-05: Mike D'Antoni, Phoenix Suns
2005-06: Avery Johnson, Dallas Mavericks
2006-07: Sam Mitchell, Toronto Raptors
2007-08: Byron Scott, New Orleans Hornets
2008-09: Mike Brown, Cleveland Cavaliers
2009-10: Scott Brooks, Oklahoma City Thunder
2010-11: Tom Thibodeau, Chicago Bulls