Photo: Margie Fisher Photo: William Luther /Express-News Photo: Edward A. Ornelas /Staff Photographer

Gregg Popovich’s request was not as simple as it sounded, but former Spurs standout Sean Elliott had to interpret the instructions that way.

In one of the earlier shootarounds since Popovich took the helm as head coach of the Spurs, he told Elliott to help on defense in the lane, and then quickly recover to his assignment — defending a shooter in the corner. Elliott heard the order but was a bit perplexed initially.

“I said, ‘Pop, you want me to get to this spot and then get all the way back to that spot?’” Elliott recalled. “He said, ‘Well if you can’t do it, I’ll get somebody else who can.’”

Not wanting to lose his job, Elliott did what he was told. At that point, he understood Popovich wanted this specific defense, no matter the level of difficulty.

“He’s very demanding,” said Elliott. “A lot of guys haven’t had a coach like that.”

Around the NBA, former and current players have similar stories when it comes to playing for Popovich. They explain how assertive the 69-year-old coach is as well as the mandate for effort on defense.

If young players are not aware of his style, they will quickly be told of Popovich’s passion for getting the most out of players for the good of the team. And then, they’ll be informed of the armor needed to endure it all.

“You have to have a thick skin, that’s for sure,” Elliott said. “You have to park your ego, and you have to realize that you can’t take things personally. That’s the biggest thing.

Guard Patty Mills said: “There are people that can handle it, and there are people that can’t. But the end goal of why he does what he does is for the better of the team. It is for the individual. The end goal is a championship.”

And while that goal is in progress, Popovich will provide the information of what it takes to survive an 82-game season, plus the playoffs, under his leadership. In his way, more direct than not, Popovich will reveal what players need to achieve success not only with the Spurs but in the NBA.

In most cases, it starts with mental preparation.

Making things work

Manu Ginobili was not expecting things to be easy after he began his career with the Spurs in 2002, three years after he was drafted 57th overall.

Ginobili knew he had to gain Popovich’s trust. But he needed to figure out how he would earn it.

Ginobili concluded he would just be himself, play his style. He decided this would be the way to convince Popovich that he wanted to help the team win.

It turns out; it would be a more difficult challenge than he expected.

“The first two years, I’m not saying it was hell, but they were tough,” said Ginobili. “We were not looking eye-to-eye on many things.”

After averaging 7.6 points in 69 games the first season, Ginobili’s numbers increased in his second year, but he admitted he felt “devastated.” For some reason, things still weren’t clicking with Popovich. Ginobili’s playing style — the abnormal passing, hair flopping all over as he drove in traffic to get a basket — had yet to resonate with Popovich.

“I didn’t think it was going to work out,” Ginobili recalled. “I was not going to give up. I was not going to say ‘take me somewhere else.’ But it was tough.”

It took multiple conversations with Popovich before Ginobili finally felt comfortable. His longtime teammate, Tony Parker, also chimed in.

Parker had felt Popovich’s wrath earlier in his career and offered Ginobili the same advice Tim Duncan gave Parker.

“I was like, ‘Be patient. He’s going to see you do way more positive stuff than just that crazy pass you just did. At the end of the day, he’s a great coach, and I think he’s going to see that,’” Parker said. “And it took some time for Pop to get used to it too because we were a halfcourt team when I first arrived. It was all for Timmy and David (Robinson). We had to evolve as everybody was evolving. Slowly but surely, Pop gave more stuff to me, more stuff to Manu, more responsibility. … It took a little bit to find that happy middle.”

For Ginobili and Popovich, that happy middle came at the end of his second season. By that time, the two agreed on how to proceed. The coach gave the player a bit more leeway, not chastising his every move on the court. In exchange, Ginobili became more careful and less erratic at times.

“There were a few things that he said or did or I perceived as great signs,” Ginobili said. “I realized that something changed.”

The result? Ginobili averaged 16 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.9 assists. He was named an All-Star for the first time in his career. And the Spurs won their third NBA title.

“By the end of the season, I realized that I earned his trust and that he wanted me in the program long term,” Ginobili said.

Gaining Pop’s trust

Mills endured a similar process to gain Popovich’s trust.

After signing with the Spurs in March 2012, Mills played in only 16 games. He was determined to make more of an impact in his second season in San Antonio, but despite a stellar showing at the London Olympics the previous summer, it did not happen.

Coached by former Spurs assistant coach Brett Brown, Mills averaged a team-high 21.2 points, helping the Australian national team finish 3-3. Mills felt his performance that summer would propel him to a prominent role on the Spurs’ 2012-13 roster. But Mills’ production was below his standards. He averaged 5.1 points in 58 games and was a bit overweight.

“I was foolish to think I could have such a good Olympics and just roll right into San Antonio thinking I could take off where I left off at the Olympics,” he said. “I had to adjust. But also, I had to go through a learning curve to understand what this place is all about. What it takes to play for this team and how to go about it as well.”

Mills contemplated how he would make his time under Popovich work. He refused to give up. No trade or release was requested.

“That was the easy way out,” he said. “I wanted to play for this team. So, what do I need to do?”

With the assistance of his girlfriend, Alyssa Levesque, Mills spent the summer of 2013 getting in shape and working on his game. He wanted to be a different player for Popovich but did not want the Spurs to know how hard he was training. Mills wanted his actions to show.

Mills appeared at training camp more cut. He shaved his face and head. It was a “new person. Day 1, let’s go. I’m ready to roll. It was a mental thing for me to be able to walk in Day 1 as a new person, a new beginning.”

Popovich approved. Like Ginobili and Parker before him, Mills overcame the mental hurdle, comprised and made it work. All three showed their competitiveness and allowed themselves to be coached.

Asked to provide advice from what he learned, Ginobili said: “Pay attention to what he says, what he expects from you, what he demands from you and then start building from there.”

Between the ears

Pau Gasol hears Popovich’s voice even when he’s not speaking. He reminds himself always about how to play solid, with edge, competitiveness and execution.

Playing smart and playing hard. It’s what Popovich calls playing between the ears.

“You have to play the game the right way,” said former Spurs assistant coach Chad Forcier, now an assistant with the Orlando Magic. “You have to be smart. You have got to understand what your assignments are. Get your communication right.”

And when playing between the ears doesn’t occur, Popovich appears.

Gasol found out for himself last postseason. It was Game 5 at home, against the Houston Rockets. The game was tied at 101 with 11.1 seconds remaining, and the Spurs had a chance to win the game in regulation.

LaMarcus Aldridge came out to set a screen for Mills, who was being defended by Patrick Beverley. The Rockets switched, and the Spurs had a mismatch — Beverley guarding Aldridge, who positioned himself in the post to take advantage.

But Gasol did not relocate away from the paint to allow Aldridge to take advantage. Gasol stayed in the post, blocking Mills from getting the ball to Aldridge. Mills was forced to take a 3-pointer, which he made after time had expired.

Popovich expressed his disappointment and let Gasol know. To his credit, Gasol took the blame for the error.

“I made a wrong read,” Gasol said. “I saw a switch, but I should’ve stayed out because Beverley went with LaMarcus and we could’ve played off that. So, I made a bad read on that play.”

Taking accountability is something players must do while playing for Popovich. But Gasol knows not to take things personally when reprimanded.

“You just take it with a grain of salt,” Gasol said. “But at the same time, you understand that the game is emotional. He’s an emotional coach. You’re going to mess up at times, and that’s all right. You don’t want to make mistakes. You want to minimize them. But I think he brings a certain level of emotion. Sometimes it comes out in those moments. But you can’t take it personal.”

Added former Spurs guard Antonio Daniels: “I’ll tell you this, the thing about Pop that I’ve always loved and respected, he will dress you down in front of your teammates. He’ll dress you down in front of the fans. But his door is always open. And as a player, you respect that.

“Meaning, he’ll say whatever he has to say to you, but if there is anything you have a question on that you don’t understand, that you can’t grasp the concept of, he has an open-door policy. A lot of coaches say they have an open-door policy, but their door is not open. Pop’s door was always open to come in and discuss whatever it may be to avoid getting back to that point of getting dressed down again.”

Daniels took advantage of that open-door policy in 2001 after Popovich decided to name Parker the new starting point guard. Daniels said he was not upset at the move but wanted to understand what was next.

“I did talk to him about that,” Daniels said. “OK, I understand that I’m not starting, but how could I be at my best in this role you have me in now.”

Mental toughness

Daniels did not always understand how to play for Popovich. He said it took time to learn how to satisfy the coach. A lot of it was what Popovich refers to as “mental toughness.”

“I would be completely lying to you if I told you that once I got here to San Antonio, I walked in and I was mentally ready to go,” Daniels said. “No, that was a process that I continued when I left. I didn’t have it all figured out when I was here. But then once I left here; you always hear the term, ‘If I knew then what I know now.’ That was one of those situations.”

Added Daniels: “Tim had to learn it. Kawhi (Leonard) had to learn it. David had to learn it. No one comes in knowing.”

“What he likes about guys are the basic things,” assistant coach Ime Udoka said. “Things you learn in middle school, in the eighth grade. And then the other part is egoless people. If you’re not a superstar, if you’re not a Tim, Tony, Manu, Kawhi, those guys, then he wants a well-rounded team player with fundamentals. But you have to be mentally tough.”

It was Udoka’s toughness during his playing days that attracted the Spurs to him in August 2007. That’s when he signed as a free agent.

Needing to add a defender to help Bruce Bowen, the Spurs scouted Udoka thoroughly while he was with the Portland Trail Blazers. The Spurs appreciated the way he played defense and held his ground while assigned to guard Kobe Bryant.

“Defense is where he hangs his hat on night in, night out,” Udoka said. “No matter what the team is doing offensively, (defense) is what he preaches no matter who you are. You get a player like Bryn Forbes, Gary Neal, guys who are known for scoring, he’s going to demand defense as if you’re a defensive player.”

It’s the one area where Popovich does not tolerate errors or a lack of effort. Players will make or miss shots. If they are the right shots, he will live with the results. But fail to play defense and a player will get yanked immediately.

“You can miss five in a row if they’re good shots,” Davis Bertans said. “But he cares about those little things on defense that we have. We have team rules that we have to do against (each opponent). He cares about that.”

Rudy Gay recently learned that lesson. After playing a little more than five minutes in the first half in a win over New Orleans, Gay sat the entire second half. The competitor in Gay was upset, but he identified what he needed to do.

The next game, against Minnesota, Gay shot 7-of-12 from the field, scoring 14 points. More importantly, he was solid on defense, tying a season-high four blocks to help the Spurs win.

“He challenges you,” Gay said. “Every second. He demands a lot from you. Some people say it’s tough, but I take it as a compliment. You never want a coach to not care about you. So, you try to take it as a compliment and be as productive as (you) can be.”

Added Udoka: “If you play with the right effort and make a mistake, he’s not going to kill you. As long as it’s something you don’t do consistently.”

Not for everyone

Before being honored in Denver during a Spurs-Nuggets game, former NBA guard Allen Iverson smiled when asked if Popovich’s presence made it even more special.Although he never played for Popovich, Iverson always admired the coach.

“Pop has meant so much to me in my career,” Iverson said. “I’ve learned so much from him from afar. That’s how legendary and great he is as a coach. You can look at things that he orchestrates on the floor and learn from it.

“I just think he’s so great for the league, so great for the players that he coached because he’s always teaching you to play the right way. And it’s going to be his way or the highway.”

Asked if he could ever envision playing for Popovich while he was in his prime, Iverson said: “Definitely. It might have taken the experience of learning from Larry Brown and then transitioning to playing for him.”

Players with experience admitted there is a certain level of maturity and awareness that is needed to play for Popovich.

And the coach doesn’t believe in favoritism. He coaches everyone the same way. Elliott learned that in his early years, too.

Popovich and Elliott were close before Popovich fired Bob Hill and named himself head coach during the 1996-97 season. The two were on the Spurs Caravan while Popovich served as an assistant coach after Elliott’s rookie season.

“It was different for me when Pop became the head coach and the man because we had been close,” Elliott said. “More than just an assistant coach and player friendship. It’s like your buddy is taking over, and then your buddy is yelling at you. It’s like, ‘Wait a minute. We’re boys. Why are you getting on me like this?’”

Popovich and Elliott did not always see eye-to-eye. They had to talk behind closed doors to revise their situation. They were no longer buddies. Elliott needed to adjust.

“We had our disagreements,” Elliott said. “But we handled it well and we’re still great friends because of it.”

Asked if every player could play for Popovich, Elliott responded: “Not everybody can. There are a few guys that are in the league. They’ve been around a long time and are set in their ways. They don’t like a coach being this demanding. And some guys just don’t have the mental makeup for it.”

Gay concurred. “Some people in the NBA are prima donnas. They feel like they have everything figured out. Even some of the best players feel like they have it figured out and they don’t. I’ve seen some things people can fix, and I’m sure they’ve seen things in me, too. We’re all students of the game. But this league has a lot of prima donnas,” he said.

“No,” said Daniels when asked the same question. “And the reason I’ll say that is every player is not built the same. I played with guys that are extremely tough physically, but not tough mentally. I played for guys that are extremely tough mentally, but not tough physically. To play for Pop, you have to be both. And you have to be willing to be coached, and that’s saying a lot in today’s NBA.”

One of the great subjects of debate around the league is how long Popovich will continue coaching. When will he walk away from the game, travel the world and drink some of the best wine money can buy?

With Duncan gone, and Parker and Ginobili getting closer to retirement, too, Popovich, who will coach the 2020 U.S. Olympic basketball team, might consider hanging up the clipboard sooner rather than later. When asked why he still enjoys roaming the sidelines, Popovich said he’s still passionate about having a role in the growth of players.

As long as he enjoys that part of it, why walk away?

“It’s all about competitiveness and watching guys grow,” Popovich said. “Watching guys change and becoming more mature in the game and in the world. That’s what it’s all about.”