Reports: San Antonio Spurs legend Tim Duncan won’t return as full-time assistant coach

Tim Duncan won't be back as a full-time assistant coach with the San Antonio Spurs this season, according to reports from both the New York Times and ESPN.

Although the five-time NBA Champion served as acting head coach for two games last season, he didn't travel to the bubble in Orlando, Florida, after the season resumed. Duncan remained in the Alamo City to help LaMarcus Aldridge rehab after shoulder surgery, team officials said at the time.

Duncan, 44, didn't join the coaching staff until three years after his retirement, although he frequently visited team practices during that stretch. At the start of last season, head coach Gregg Popovich signaled that Duncan might not have a lengthy run on the coaching staff.

"Something tells me it's not going to be his passion for life, but he's going to be great this year," Popovich told media.

? Last season, Spurs missed the playoffs for the first time since Duncan joined the team in 1997.

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