LAS VEGAS — There are two things you should know about Ime Udoka.

He's patient. And he's not really a yeller.

Udoka is no clone of Gregg Popovich. Instead, he's playing the student role — watching, learning, presenting new ideas and growing.

The Spurs' assistant coach has been running the Summer League team again this year in Las Vegas, where their tournament ended late Saturday with a 95-94 triple-overtime loss to the Wizards in the quarterfinals.

He views the task as a stepping stone, a chance to showcase his skills, gain more experience and get a better feel for what Popovich goes through every season.

“He's running plays, he's calling timeouts,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. “You know, some people find out they don't (want to be a head coach). Some people find out it's what they should be doing, and I think that's good.”

Udoka joined the Spurs' coaching staff in 2012 after playing seven seasons in the NBA, which included stints with the Spurs, Sacramento, Portland, New York, and Los Angeles Lakers.

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His statistics weren't earth shattering. The most he averaged was 8.4 points and 3.7 rebounds in 2006-07 in Portland, where he was born and played high school and college basketball. He also played in the NBA D-League and overseas.

At the time Udoka was hired, Popovich praised his former player's “work ethic” and said he had a “natural inclination to teach.” Those were the attributes that stuck out, and they will probably be some of the reasons Udoka one day has a head-coaching job.

“I'm in no rush,” Udoka said. “It's obviously a goal of mine, something I want to attain, but patience is the biggest key. I'm learning from the best in the business on a very successful team, so, I'm in no rush to rush the process.”

Udoka, 36, displayed some of what he's learned when the Spurs played the New Orleans Pelicans last week.

The Spurs were down 86-85 with 27.7 seconds left after Pelicans forward Jeff Carter missed two free throws. Jeff Ayres grabbed the rebound, and his teammates bolted downcourt.

At first, Udoka let it play out, but he wasn't pleased with what he saw and called a timeout with 19.6 seconds left.

“I didn't like what we had with Austin (Daye) up top,” he explained. “I obviously thought he had a mismatch, but I wanted to draw something up to try and get us a bucket, so you call a timeout there, something I learned watching Pop.”

Udoka ran a high pick-and-roll with Ayers and Darius Morris, telling Ayres to look for shooters. Ayres didn't find any and took the ball to the basket himself, got the bucket, was fouled and hit the free throw. The Spurs won 88-86.

“He knows the identity and the way Coach Pop wants to do things, and he's carrying it over to Summer League,” Ayres said. “It's just like playing for Coach Pop.”

Except it's Udoka.

As Ayres tells it, though, the similarities are there.

“He's holds everybody accountable just like Coach Pop does,” Ayres said. “He has a different approach to it, but you get the same feeling. He knows what he's talking about.”

Ayres paused and smiled before adding, “Only the main difference is he's not yelling as much as Coach Pop does.”

Going forward, being on Popovich's staff may be Udoka's ultimate weapon in his quest to be a coach. Evidence shows that spending time on his bench opens up other opportunities.

“My impression of him has always been good, but what's more significant to me is to hear Pop and (Spurs general manager R.C. Buford) or the other coaches talk about him,” former Spurs assistant and NBA coach P.J. Carlesimo said. “So, it's not so much what I've observed, it's the comments from those guys.”

Orlando Magic coach Jacque Vaughn, Philadelphia 76ers coach Brett Brown, Atlanta Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer and former Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Lakers coach Mike Brown served on Popovich's coaching staff before becoming coaches.

“That's definitely going to help,” Hornets assistant coach Patrick Ewing said.

Udoka has been through his fair share of ups and downs as a player, something he believes will translate to becoming a better coach.

“I've been the guy out there,” Udoka said, “I've been through every situation as a player. It gives me a little bit of an upper hand. I can relate to guys. I tell them about experiences I've been through and what you have to do to be successful at it.

“I've been around a lot of different organizations as a player, so I got to see the good and the bad, and I can kind of pull from those experiences when I'm coaching — what I will do, what I won't do.”

What he will do is continue to show the patience he showed as a player, going from Portland State to the International Basketball Association, to Spain, France and three years in the D-League before landing in the NBA.

“It's just the opportunity,” Rivers said. “It has to present itself. ... You're in the right place, at the right time, you got a job. Once you get the job, you got to prove you can do it. Everybody gets there in different paths. The path he's taking is pretty good.”

Udoka said he won't accept any job just to become a coach — it has to be right. In the meantime, he has no problem continuing to wait and learn. He did it before.

“It's similar to how I was as a player,” he said. “I didn't get drafted, but I came in the long way. I'd rather be ready when it's time than jump in there and not be ready for the situation.”

jyoung@express-news.net

Twitter: @jabari_young