As Ray Romano joined Running Point in its sophomore season, he looked to an NBA staple for inspiration with his performance.
The 2x Golden Globe nominee revealed that he based his Season 2 performance as the Los Angeles Waves’ Head Coach Norm Stinson on San Antonio Spurs president and former coach Gregg Popovich, following his last-minute casting.
“I got the offer and I had to come in next week,” he explained to People. “And I usually do a little bit of an actory thing and do a little backstory, but I didn’t really have the time.”
Romano added, “I thought what NBA [should I look to] … Well, first of all, the script was explaining who the guy was. And then I like … Who can I emulate? And the guy I thought of was [Gregg] Popovich. Yeah. I think if I ever was a coach, I would be close to him. I’m close to his age and I just like his demeanor and all that.”
Popovich was head coach of the San Antonio Spurs for 29 seasons from 1996 to 2025, including five NBA championship victories, before transitioning to president of basketball operations for the team.
Ray Romano as Coach Norm Stinson in ‘Running Point’ (Courtesy of Netflix)
“That was the base. And then we let it go from there,” Romano said.
Romano joined the Season 2 cast of Running Point last October, replacing the previously cast Robert Townsend as Coach Stinson, a basketball savant-turned-social recluse who teams up with Isla (Kate Hudson) to re-discover his love for the game, and life.
The role was reconceived after the casting shuffle, with Romano joining the production for reshoots.
