Gregg Popovich 'Felt Badly' About Kawhi Leonard Being Booed by Spurs Fans

San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich wasn't pleased the fans at AT&T Center booed Kawhi Leonard during Thursday's contest.

"I felt badly about it," Popovich said, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN.com. "Kawhi's a high-character guy. We all make decisions in our lives with what we're going to do with our futures, and he has that same right as any of us. So I felt badly, in all honesty."

Kawhi, Pop Reunite After Game

Popovich's Spurs defeated Leonard's Toronto Raptors 125-107 in Leonard's first game back in San Antonio since he was traded this past offseason. The fans booed him throughout the evening, including during pregame introductions, when he was shown during a tribute video and whenever he had the ball in his hands.

He still managed 21 points and five assists, although DeMar DeRozan—who came to San Antonio as part of the trade that sent Leonard to the Eastern Conference—bested him with a triple-double of 21 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists.

Danny Green was also part of that trade, and Thursday was also the first time he played in San Antonio since the move. The AT&T Center crowd embraced him with cheers, underscoring the difference in perception between he and Leonard last season.

Leonard played a mere nine games in 2017-18 for San Antonio due to a quad injury, and Adrian Wojnarowski and Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com reported his decision to rehab with his own group instead of the Spurs resulted in a "chilling impact" between the two sides.

That didn't stop Popovich from embracing Leonard with a hug after the game and feeling guilty about the crowd's reaction in his postgame comments.