While sources say Gregg Popovich could return for the 22-23 season as head coach of the San Antonio Spurs, Zach Lowe has identified a number of potential candidates to replace him.

Will Hardy, Brett Brown, Manu Ginobili and Becky Hammon will be the leading candidates. 

Hardy is a longtime assistant coach with the Spurs and is now working under Ime Udoka with the Boston Celtics.

Brown spent several seasons as head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers before he was relieved of his duties after the 19-20 season.

Ginobili rejoined the Spurs last week as an advisor last week but his appetite for coaching is unclear.

Hammon has been a candidate for several head coaching jobs in recent years.

The San Antonio Spurs have discussed a trade for Ben Simmons with the Philadelphia 76ers, but sources tell Zach Lowe of ESPN that those talks have not gotten far.

The Spurs lack a foundational star, which hurts them in their efforts to trade for a player of Simmons' caliber.

When the Spurs traded Kawhi Leonard, they turned down several offers that were heavy on future first round picks. San Antonio choice instead to pair LaMarcus Aldridge with DeMar DeRozan. San Antonio also acquired Jakob Poeltl and the pick that became Keldon Johnson.

Following the Los Angeles Lakers' exit in the first round of the playoffs, the front office explored trading for stars such as Damian Lillard, Bradley Beal, DeMar DeRozan and Russell Westbrook. LeBron James setting up a war room of his own at his Brentwood estate for some in-person player meetings while leading remote communications in other conversations.

DeRozan took part in two meetings with James and also kept in touch via phone. DeRozan came away from the meetings believing he was the Lakers' priority, but as the process unfolded he was concerned about a perceived disconnect between the Lakers' stars and the front office. 

The group focused first on Lillard and Beal, but there was no viable path to trading for either of them considering their teams' asking prices. 

Rob Pelinka eventually locked in on a deal for Buddy Hield over a sign-and-trade for DeRozan before they shifted to a Westbrook trade. 

DeRozan eventually went to the Chicago Bulls in a sign-and-trade.

The San Antonio Spurs have hired Manu Ginobili as a special advisor to basketball operations.

Ginobili will take on a player-centric role focused on the development of players on and off the court.

Ginoblii retired from the NBA in 2018 after helping the Spurs win four championships. Gregg Popovich, RC Buford and Brian Wright have sought a role for Ginobili since his retirement. 

Host Danny Leroux (@DannyLeroux), Jonathan Tjarks of The Ringer (@JonathanTjarks) and Rob Mahoney of The Ringer (@RobMahoney) go in-depth on the NBA’s Southwest Division.

They discuss how the Rockets, Pelicans, Spurs, Mavericks and Grizzlies fared in the off-season, including which teams improved and what moves stood out. The three also predict the season to come, including projected finish, breakout players and rookies they are most excited to see.

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Host Danny Leroux (@DannyLeroux) and Arturo Galletti (@AmericanNumbers) break down the over/under win totals for the Western Conference heading into the 21-22 season.

They discuss the win total, division, conference and title odds as well as any pertinent individual award lines for the Thunder (3:18), Rockets (14:00), Spurs (20:42), Timberwolves (24:19), Kings (29:55), Pelicans (37:16), Grizzlies (46:42), Trail Blazers (51:45), Clippers (59:06), Nuggets (1:05:03), Warriors (1:12:12), Mavericks (1:21:22), Suns (1:31:11), Lakers (1:37:44) and Jazz (1:48:59).

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Keita Bates-Diop has agreed to a new two-year deal with the San Antonio Spurs.

Bates-Diop was on a Two-Way deal with the Spurs last season.

The San Antonio Spurs are releasing Chandler Hutchison.

Hutchison, who has a guaranteed salary of $4 million for the 21-22 season, was acquired by the Spurs from the Washington Wizards as part of the five-team Russell Westbrook trade.

Hutchison averaged 5.2 points and 3.2 rebounds in 15.7 minutes over 18 games last season with the Wizards.