Gregg Popovich Compares Christopher Columbus To Hitler

The NBA regular season is still a week away, but Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich is already in mid-season form. Never one to pass up an opportunity to lecture us, "Pop" turned his attention away from his poorly constructed roster and directed it towards Christopher Columbus, the explorer who has been dead for over half a millennium, and compared him to Hitler.

The Hitler comparison came when Popovich learned that a San Antonio school district gave students Monday off to celebrate Columbus Day.

"Are we that backward that we have school districts that do that? I’m amazed. Just amazed,” said Popovich before a recent Spurs preseason game.

Before he commented on Christopher Columbus, Popovich, a noted wino, may have doubled up on the burgundy:

“Columbus? He initiated a new world genocide. That’s what he did. Beginning with him and what he set in motion, and what followed meant the annihilation of every Indigenous person in Hispaniola, which was Haiti and the Dominican Republic today. He took slaves. He mutilated. He murdered. And we’re going to say ‘slash’ and honor him?”

Popovich, who should direct some of his anger towards his Spurs team that seems destined to miss the playoffs for a third consecutive season, took particular issue with the Alamo Heights school district:

"What the hell is Alamo Heights thinking? It’s Columbus Day. That’s why they’re off on Monday? Maybe there’s something I’m missing and I’m ignorant, but it makes me feel like they’re living in a phone booth and they’re educating our kids. Columbus Day? And we’re going to honor that?”

The 72-year-old Popovich, who often pounds the table for equality, seems to ignore that Italian-Americans might take pride in Columbus' achievements and role in world history.

“That’s a silly argument. It’s like saying we should be proud of Hitler because we’re German. I mean it makes no sense. It’s about Columbus. It’s not about Italian-Americans," said Popovich.

Most school calendars across the country have Thanksgiving penciled in as the next scheduled holiday off, leaving Popovich just over a month to push back against Pilgrims and Indians.