Gregg Popovich has remarried, and his new wife has a decades-long connection to the San Antonio Spurs organization.
The former Spurs head coach, 77, married Mary Barth Budenholzer in Texas on Sept. 16, according to a Bexar County marriage license obtained by TMZ. Mary was previously married to Mike Budenholzer, one of Popovich’s longest-serving assistant coaches.
Local outlet News4SA also reported that the marriage record shows the couple wed Sept. 16, while CBS Sports confirmed the longtime professional connection between Popovich and Budenholzer.
Popovich and Mary had been seen together at Spurs games during the previous season, although neither has publicly said when their relationship began. TMZ reported that the Spurs declined to comment on the marriage.
Popovich and Mike Budenholzer Worked Together for 17 Seasons
Budenholzer joined the Spurs organization in 1994 as a video coordinator. After two seasons, he moved to the coaching staff and spent the next 17 years as one of Popovich’s assistants.
The Spurs said when Budenholzer left for Atlanta in 2013 that he had spent 19 years with the organization overall. As an assistant, he helped San Antonio compile a 908-438 regular-season record and win NBA championships in 1999, 2003, 2005 and 2007.
Popovich made clear how highly he regarded Budenholzer at the time, saying his longtime assistant had effectively become “more of a co-head coach than an assistant” because of his knowledge, teaching ability and relationships with players.
The Bucks later highlighted the same 17-season run when hiring Budenholzer in 2018, while the Suns cited his four championships under Popovich when bringing him to Phoenix in 2024.
Budenholzer had already left San Antonio for the Atlanta Hawks when Popovich and the Spurs won another championship in 2014. He later won a title of his own as head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021. Mary and Budenholzer divorced in 2016.
It Is Popovich’s Second Marriage
Popovich was previously married to Erin Popovich for approximately four decades. She died in April 2018 at age 67 following a long-term illness. The NBA reported at the time that the Spurs confirmed her death. Gregg and Erin had two children and two grandchildren.
Then-Spurs general manager R.C. Buford remembered Erin as a “strong, wonderful, kind, intelligent woman” who brought love, support and humor to those around her. Popovich’s Sept. 16 wedding to Mary marks his first marriage since Erin’s death eight years ago.
Popovich Left the Spurs Bench After 29 Seasons
Popovich stepped down as San Antonio’s head coach in May 2025 after 29 seasons, ending one of the longest and most successful coaching runs in NBA history.
NBA.com reported that Popovich moved into his role as president of basketball operations, while longtime assistant Mitch Johnson became the permanent head coach.
Johnson had already handled the final 77 games of the 2024-25 season after Popovich suffered a stroke and stepped away from coaching duties. The NBA later reassigned those games to Johnson, adjusting Popovich’s final career record to 1,390-824.
The league’s updated record book still places Popovich first on the NBA’s all-time coaching wins list with 1,390 victories. Popovich won five championships as Spurs head coach, earned three Coach of the Year awards and entered the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2023.
The Hall of Fame also credits him with five NBA championships, three Coach of the Year awards and the most coaching victories in league history. His coaching tree includes Budenholzer, Steve Kerr, Mike Brown, Monty Williams and Becky Hammon. Popovich also coached the United States to an Olympic gold medal at the Tokyo Games.
His Spurs Connection Goes Back Nearly Four Decades
He first joined the Spurs as an assistant coach in 1988 before later spending time with the Golden State Warriors. He returned to San Antonio in 1994 as general manager and vice president of basketball operations.
Budenholzer arrived that same year to work in the video department. NBA.com later recalled that Popovich personally recruited him after Budenholzer repeatedly pursued an opportunity with the organization.
Popovich eventually moved from the front office to the bench in December 1996. Budenholzer was promoted to assistant coach during the same era, beginning the 17-season partnership that would produce four championships before Budenholzer left for Atlanta.