Outlining San Antonio Spurs' Expectaions for Mitch Johnson

Taking over a position from someone can be a difficult transition to make. Taking over from someone who was a tenured employee can be even harder. Taking over for an absolute legend of a coach, such as Gregg Popovich, may prove to be an astronomical task, but Mitch Johnson has been tasked as the man to do it.

Popovich is one of the most revered coaches to ever do it. He led five teams to the NBA Championship, and he was also named a three-time coach of the year. Stepping into the role vacated by Popovich is not something that the San Antonio Spurs have had to deal with for almost thirty years.

Mitch Johnson played basketball for the Stanford Cardinal. He had a three year playing career, playing in the developmental league and overseas. He began coaching the Spurs G-League team in 2016 and would join the Spurs coaching staff as an assistant to Gregg Popovich three years later. This is a huge feather in the cap for him moving forward.

Getting to study under the tutelage of Popovich for a six-year time frame has definitely given Johnson some ideas of how to be successful as a head coach of this team. He has gotten to know the players on a personal and developmental level, and will only look to build on that moving forward.

He is going to have his work cut out for him right away with the Spurs having the number two pick in the upcoming NBA draft. The idea around the league is that the Spurs will draft Dylan Harper with their pick. He will for sure be an interesting fit with their already crowded backcourt of De'Aaron Fox and the rookie of the year in Stephon Castle.

He also will have to decide what he wants to do with the team options the Spurs have due for Jeramy Sochan, Malaki Branham, and Blake Wesley. Sochan has become a key piece to pair up with Victor Wembanyama, but the other two are going to be a big decision for Johnson right off the bat

Eyes will be on Johnson as he takes his team through the draft, summer league, and pre-season to see how he will go about filling the shoes of a man who is near and dear to Spurs nation.