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[Saba Sports News] The San Antonio Spurs acted quickly to fill their head coaching vacancy following Gregg Popovich’s retirement.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Spurs will promote assistant coach Mitch Johnson to the role of full-time head coach.
Johnson took over as interim head coach for much of last season after Popovich suffered a stroke.
Marc Stein of The Stein Line had previously reported that Johnson was the leading candidate to succeed Popovich.
Given the Spurs’ long-standing tradition of developing coaching talent from within, promoting Johnson fits the franchise’s usual approach.
He has been on the Spurs’ staff since 2019 and had already been serving as Popovich’s top stand-in even before last season.
With Popovich now stepping into a full-time team president role, it’s likely he had considerable influence in the decision.
Johnson led the Spurs to a 31-45 record during his interim tenure, with the team finishing 34-48 overall.
Had San Antonio opted for an external search, they likely would have drawn interest from several high-profile candidates.
The organization boasts a reputation for stability and has a promising young core featuring Victor Wembanyama, De’Aaron Fox, and rookie Stephon Castle. With a strong foundation in place, Johnson now steps into a golden opportunity to guide the Spurs back to contention.