Gregg Popovich pulled Manu Ginobili aside for a little talk.

The coach wanted his player to take fewer chances with his body. Ginobili had suffered too many injuries over the course of his career, and Popovich pleaded for him to be a little less sacrificial with his limbs.

Popovich’s words fell on deaf ears.

“I’m Manu. This is what I do,” Ginobili responded, according to Popovich. The coach had no choice but to back off.

“After those talks, I came to the conclusion that there is no way that I can make him be safe, or put him in non-precarious situations out on the court,” Popovich said. “He’s going to be who he is.”

Ginobili is now 39 and may be playing his final season in the NBA, yet he still dives for every loose ball and takes charges as though he were decades younger.

He may not be the fastest or strongest guy to play the game, but those who have played with him or observed him over the years often list him as one of the toughest of all time.

“There’s only one other guy that I’ve seen that competes the way he does, and that’s Michael Jordan,” said former Spurs star and current TV analyst Sean Elliott. “It’s almost like there’s something in his DNA where he can’t help it. He’s got to go out there, and he’s got to go 100 percent all of the time.”

Expansive legacy

Ginobili’s legacy extends far beyond his stat line.

He popularized the “Eurostep,” a move in which a player takes a step in one direction, then quickly takes another step in a different direction.

Ginobili also established himself as one of the best lefties to ever play the game, giving defenders an unusual challenge in a right-hand-dominated sport.

“He doesn’t move at a fast pace, but he’s so crafty,” Danny Green said. “You knew where he was going, but you couldn’t stop him from getting there.”

Green has had the pleasure of watching Ginobili work over defenders. He’s also had the displeasure of being worked over by Ginobili.

The two used to be matched against each other during scrimmages when Green first joined the Spurs. Green couldn’t believe how seriously Ginobili would play in those practice situations.

“Any time he was on the floor, any possession, whether it’s practice or a game, he’s going to sacrifice his body,” Green said.

That mentality had its pros, mainly because it was contagious.

“If he wants to win that bad, you better be wanting to win that bad too,” Green said.

But it also had its cons.

Ginobili has suffered more than 30 injuries over his 15-year NBA career, including sprains, strains, bruises, torn ligaments, stress fractures, back spasms, hip flexors, a fractured hand and a groin injury that led to testicular surgery. His back tightened up on him during the Jan. 21 overtime win at Cleveland.

Popovich isn’t the only brave soul who has attempted to slow Ginobili. Multiple players have talked to Ginobili about it, including Tim Duncan.

“We’ve told him, ‘Manu, we need you. This is just one play, one game. Take it easy a little bit.’ But there is no taking it easy for Manu,” Green said.

Last season Ginobili sustained what he called the most painful injury of his life. It happened in a Feb. 3 game against New Orleans. Ryan Anderson inadvertently kneed him in his groin, sending Ginobili to the ground writhing in pain.

The impact was so severe that Ginobili required immediate testicular surgery. He later acknowledged the pain was so unbearable that it made him momentarily regret his decision to return for the 2015-16 season.

Ginobili was sidelined for a month because of the injury. Within the first week of his return to action, he took charges from Serge Ibaka and Enes Kanter in a game against Oklahoma City.

“I was like, ‘Good lord, I hurt for him,’” Elliott said. “Years ago I made an analogy. I said, ‘When there’s a loose ball around, it’s like if you dropped a hot dog or a sausage on the floor, and asked your dog not to eat it. He’s going to eat it. He can’t help himself.’ That’s the makeup that he has, and we’ve benefited from it.”

Ginobili is a two-time NBA All-Star and has career averages of 13.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.9 assists a game. He has helped the Spurs win four NBA championships.

There’s no shortage of highlights over those 15 years, including his performance in Game 1 of the Spurs’ first-round playoff series against Phoenix in 2008, when Ginobili scored eight of his 24 points in the second overtime, including the game-winning shot.

There was also the time when Ginobili scored a career-high 48 points against Phoenix in 2005, helping the Spurs recover from a 17-point deficit. Or the time when Ginobili had a playoff career-high 39 points and six assists against Seattle in Game 5 of their second-round series. Or the time when Ginobili led Argentina to a stunning and improbable gold medal at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

Luke Walton, now the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, battled against Ginobili when Walton played for the Lakers from 2003-11. The Lakers and Spurs met twice in the playoffs during that period.

“I didn’t like playing against him, because he was really good,” Walton said. “He’s smart. I’ve read all the quotes from Coach Pop on how he’s sometimes the one guy who gets out of line with the way they do things. He’s a risk-taker, but he wins a lot of ballgames and makes a lot of plays for this Spurs team. I’ve always been a big fan of his.”

Now that Walton is a coach and views the game through a difference lens, he said he has an even deeper understanding of what Ginobili does for his team.

“The way he sees the floor, his ability to make passes and get his teammates easy looks, he’s a player that as a player and a coach, you really respect him and appreciate what he does,” Walton said.

Bat crazy

One of the moments Ginobili will forever be remembered for had nothing to do with basketball.

It happened in October of 2009 in a game against the Sacramento Kings. A bat flew over the court at the AT&T Center, sending players running and forcing the referees to stop play.

Ginobili didn’t scatter. Instead he swatted the bat out of the air with his bare hand, then carried it off of the court.

It instantly became an internet meme. He eventually tweeted that it was a bad idea because he had to get rabies shots, and he warned people not to emulate him because they could contract the viral disease.

Even though that happened eight years ago, everyone remembers their reaction to the infamous bat takedown.

Said Green: “I thought he was a little crazy.”

Said Tony Parker: “My first thought was, ‘Why is he doing that? Just leave it alone.’ That’s just Manu.”

Said Elliott: “He’s coming from Argentina, I think players were giving him a hard time that they have to eat bats down there.”

Ginobili, too, had a sense of humor about what happened.

“When you can’t dunk anymore, you’ve got to find some way to make it to the news,” Ginobili said at the time.

Character lauded

Ginobili’s teammates appreciate him for what he brings to the locker room as much as for what he brings to the court.

Parker had closely followed Ginobili’s career when was a star in the EuroLeague, and couldn’t wait to meet Ginobili when the Spurs signed him in 2002.

He didn’t know at the time they would be teammates for 15 years.

Ginobili, Parker and Duncan, who retired last summer, became known as the “Big Three.” They have 126 career playoff wins together, the most by any trio in NBA history.

They have watched each other have kids, and have remained friends through life’s high and lows. Parker said he’s grateful Ginobili is so likable, considering their long-standing tenure together on the team.

“Easy going, very easy going,” Parker said Ginobili. “He’s just very simple. He leads a simple life, and he’s just great to be around. When you spend all of those years together, and all of that time, it’s great to have guys that are always in a great mood. We always joke around, so that’s important for the team chemistry.”

The Big Three established a special tradition together. They had private dinners together twice a year, discussing their strategy for winning a championship, and also letting loose and enjoying each other’s company.

During the 2007 playoffs, when their second-round series against Phoenix was tied at 2-2, the Big Three decided to hold one of those dinners.

“We knew if we won that one, we had a good chance to go to the championship,” Parker said. “So that was a huge one.”

The Spurs went on to win their fourth title that season.

Ginobili also formed deep bonds with Patty Mills, and former Spurs Boris Diaw and Tiago Splitter. The foursome would always eat together whenever they were on the road, which was 41 times a year, not including the postseason.

“The four of us were doing it constantly, no matter how many times in a row, because the four of us enjoyed each other’s company.” Mills said. “When you look back on it, that was a lot of meals.”

Mills said they spoke about anything and everything, He said that Ginobili helped inspire his growth as a player and a person.

“In your circle of friends, he’s the one that’s around that allows you to grow up,” Mills said of Ginobili. “The person that he is, an intriguing person, a person that always wants to learn and find out stuff. You find yourself doing the same thing, and learning a lot from him. It’s a rare situation because you don’t get that very often. I pick his brain as much as I can.”

Mills said that when Ginobili retires, he knows Ginobili will remain in his life.

“I’m very fortunate to have that friendship,” Mills said. “It’s one of those ones that won’t end here. It will definitely keep going long after basketball.”

Nearing a close

The craziest part of Ginobili’s career might be its finale.

After playing last season with the Spurs, he represented Argentina in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Ginobili basically played all year long without a break.

That type of wear and tear takes a toll, especially when you’re creeping up to 40.

“You have to use that offseason to get your body back and recover from the aches and pains,” Elliott said. “To continue playing like that at his age, I thought that was a death sentence. But he’s been playing so well, he’s really surprised me.”

Far from being gassed, Ginobili started the season with his infamous energy and hustle. In a recent game, he even had a two-handed dunk against Phoenix.

“I hope he can walk tomorrow,” Aldridge said jokingly afterward.

Elliott has now completely reversed his thought process on Ginobili.

“I’m not even sure it’s going to be his last year because he’s playing so well right now,” Elliott said. “He looks young and the way Pop’s playing him, sometimes he has the night off, sometimes he’s playing 10 or 15 minutes. He could probably play a little bit longer.”

Whenever he’s asked about retirement, Ginobili has always said the same thing: As long as he’s still having fun, he’s going to remain on the court.

“He keeps going, he’s like the energizer bunny,” said Jason Kidd, the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks. “He enjoys the game of basketball, and I think that’s what makes him special.”

But Ginobili is getting older, and he has a wife and three young children. He has accomplished so much throughout his career, and his time as an NBA player is winding down, even though some people may be in denial about it.

“I just always judge him by his fervor, and that never seemed to wane year to year, training camp to training camp,” Popovich said. “I knew it would come at some point, just like Timmy’s did. Maybe I just don’t like to think about it, put it out of my head.”

Elliott is not in denial, but he may be experiencing some regret. He retired in 2001, two seasons before Ginobili joined the Spurs.

“Sometimes I wish I had stuck around a little bit longer,” Elliott said.

He said Ginobili is the type of guy anyone would love to play alongside.

“He’s diving for loose balls during preseason games,” Elliott said. “That’s how he is. To me, he’s the fiercest competitor to ever wear a Spurs uniform.”