During an appearance on the “All The Smoke” podcast, former NBA player Vernon Maxwell shared some intriguing stories about his tumultuous time with the San Antonio Spurs.
Maxwell, known for his fiery personality and on-court tenacity, opened up about the numerous fights he got into at clubs and how legendary coach Gregg Popovich took drastic measures to curb his brawling ways.
Maxwell, who played for the Spurs during two separate stints in his career, revealed that Popovich secretly hired a private investigator to monitor his nightlife activities. The decision came after Maxwell repeatedly found himself in altercations at clubs, much to the frustration of Popovich and the Spurs organization.
During the podcast, Maxwell recounted how Popovich warned him to stay out of clubs and avoid getting into fights. However, Maxwell’s penchant for confrontation often got the better of him.
“I kept fighting and fighting, and then Pop, he tell me, ‘Max, you gotta stay outta these goddamn clubs. You almost killed a kid last night,'” Maxwell recalled.
Despite Popovich’s stern warnings, Maxwell continued to frequent clubs and get into brawls. It was then that Popovich decided to take matters into his own hands by hiring a private investigator to keep tabs on Maxwell.
“So, motherfu*** put a P.I. on me. And then sh, motherfuc* called me the next day and said, ‘Bring your a** in here, early in the morning, I got the footage. Is this you?’ I said, ‘Fuc*** right. You goddamn right, that’s me,'” Maxwell recounted.
The footage showed Maxwell involved in yet another fight, leading Popovich to take decisive action.
“He said, ‘Go home and pack your sh. By the end of the day, I’m gonna have you a somewhere,'” Maxwell shared.
