San Antonio Spurs Coaching Staff 2023 is led by head coach Gregg Popovich. Brett Brown, Mitch Johnson, and Matt Nielsen are assistant coaches.

With the 2023-24 season still months away, the 30 teams are preparing for the upcoming 2023 NBA Draft presented by State Farm on June 22 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

The Spurs are the first team to pick an eligible rookie into their team this season as they won the NBA Draft Lottery held on 16 May 2023. They are almost certain to pick the French basketball prodigy Victor Wembanyama.

Already routed as the generational talent, the 7 feet 2 inches tall Wembanyama will be playing under the tutelage of veteran basketball coach Gregg Popovich and his assistants.

While the Spurs would be desperately looking to put on an improved performance in the upcoming season, meet their coaching panel for 2023.

Gregg Popovich – Head Coach

Gregg Popovich is currently the longest-tenured active coach in the NBA. His record for his time with the Spurs is the longest among all the other major sports leagues in the United States.

Gregg is the second-highest-paid NBA coach behind Monty Williams at an average salary of $13 million. He joined the Spurs as their head coach in 1996 but had previously served in the assistant role from 1988 to 1992.

Born on January 28, 1949, in East Chicago, Pop played as a guard for his varsity basketball team. He started his career in 1973 as an assistant mentor for his varsity team, the Air Force.

Popovich then became the head coach of the Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens from 1979-86. He then joined Kansas Jayhawks as an assistant in 1986.

Gregg returned to Pomona-Pitzer in 1987 till the next season before joining the Spurs. From 1992 to 1994, he was an assistant in the Golden State Warriors camp.

Since starting their tenure with Spurs in 1996, Popovich has become NBA Champion in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2014. Moreover, he was also awarded the Coach of the Year in 2003, 2012, and 2014.

Brett Brown – Assistant Coach

Brett Brown returned to SA Spurs as an assistant coach on June 30, 2022. The 76ers fired him after being swept out by Celtics in the 2020 Playoffs.

Brown had been serving as the head coach of the 76ers from 2013 to 2020. But before that, he had been a notable name in the Spurs mentorship.

In his previous tenure, Brett had joined the Spurs in 2007 until he bid farewell to the franchise in 2013 to undertake the Philadelphia 76ers role.

Thanks to his collegiate career, Brett has a very good understanding of the game. He played four seasons at Boston University, where he was the captain of his varsity team in his junior and senior seasons.

Brown graduated in 1983 and was a graduate assistant for his varsity team before moving to Altos Auckland in New Zealand in 1988. From 1988 to 2002, he guided three NBL teams, including the Altos, North Melbourne Giants, and Sydney Kings.

Mitch Johnson – Assistant Coach

Mitch Johnson replaced the former Spurs assistant coach Tim Duncan after the latter stepped down from his position on November 12, 2020.

Johnson actually joined the Spurs coaching team in 2019 but was promoted to Duncan’s spot in November 2020. ESPN thoroughly reported on the news while Mitch’s young age attracted much wide circulation.

Before his stint with the Spurs, Johnson had been an assistant coach for the Austin Spurs, a G League affiliate of the Spurs. He had also helped the minor league team towards the 2018 championship, adding to his accomplishments.

Matt Nielsen – Assistant Coach

The former NBLer Matt Nielsen embarked on his coaching career in 2015. Nielsen was an assistant coach of Perth Wildcats from 2015 to 2019.

He then took on the assistant mentor role for the Austin Spurs for the 2019-2020 season and was later promoted to the head coach position.

As of 2021, Nielsen remains under Gregg as an assistant coach. Before venturing into the trainer role, Matt was a basketball player from Sydney.

He played for the Sydney Sky and Sydney Kings from 1995 to 2004 while he had gone undrafted at the 2000 NBA Draft. Likewise, he also played international basketball for many leagues around Greece, Moscow, and Spain.

Candice Dupree – Player Development Coach

The WNBA powerhouse Candice Dupree currently serves as the player development coach for Spurs. Dupree accepted the offer in August 2022.

She took on the role after the former Spurs assistant coach female Becky Hammon left to undertake the head coach role for the Las Vegas Aces.

Dupree was drafted 6th overall in Round 1 by Chicago Sky at the 2006 WNBA Draft. She played with Chicago Sky until 2009 while also making time for WBC Wisła Kraków in between.

She played 468 games in her professional career and started 464 games as a power forward. More significantly, Candice won the 2014 WNBA Championship with Phoenix Mercury and was named WNBA All-Star seven times in her lifetime.

Willis Hall – Player Development Coach

Willis Hall initially joined the Spurs coaching facility as an assistant coach in 2017 but later took on the role of a video coordinator in 2020.

Willis then accepted the team’s offer to be their player development assistant coach the following year in a promotional offer. While he eventually returned as an assistant coach, Hall has become the Spurs’ Player Development coach as of the 2022-2023 NBA season.

Hall was born on November 22, 1990, in Charlotte, N.C. He played varsity basketball for the Charleston Cougars team from 2009-13. His entree to the 2009-10 Southern Conference All-Freshman Team selection remains the highlight of his collegiate career.

Greg Stiemsma – Player Development Coach

A former 6 feet 11 inches NBA center, Greg Stiemsma, played in the league from 2011-15. He played each season with the Celtics, Timberwolves, Pelicans, and the Raptors.

Stiemsma retired in 2015 but returned to NBA as a player development associate to the Timberwolves on September 12, 2019. His next stop was the Spurs, with whom he joined as their Video Assistant till 2022.

His LinkedIn confirms that Greg was promoted to the team’s Player Development Coach in August 2022, a position he has continued working on.

The Randolph native had gone undrafted at the 2008 NBA Draft and played internationally around Turkey and South Korea. He was also a player on the Sioux Falls Skyforce, a minor league affiliate of the Miami Heat.

Carlos Sosa Marin – Athletic Performance Coach

Carlos Sosa Marin joined the San Antonio team as the Athletic Performance Coach in September 2022. He has a Ph.D. degree in Sports Sciences.

Before that, Marin was the Coordinator of the Physical Preparation Area for Real Madrid Football Club from August 2014 to September 2022.

Carlos Sosa was the physical trainer, rehabilitator, physiotherapist, and physiotherapy area coordinator at the Madrid Student Basketball Club from 1999 to 2014. He graduated with a doctorate degree from the Polytechnic University of Madrid in March 2023.

Chastity Chov – Assistant Athletic Trainer

Chastity Chov is an Assistant Athletic Trainer for the Spurs under Will Sevenning. Chastity joined the team in 2021 as a Medical Assistant II intern.

The Houston native obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Science in Athletic Training from the University of Texas. Meanwhile, she completed her Master’s degree from Michigan State University in 2019.

Likewise, Chov is also pursuing her Doctor of Physical Therapy from the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences, making her a foremost choice of the Spurs.

Before the Spurs, Chastity was the Medical Assistant I Intern and Assistant Athletic Trainer for the Austin Spurs during the 2020-21 minor season.

Ryan Curtis – Performance Coach

Ryan Curtis was named the Spurs’ Sports Science Coordinator as well as a Performance Coach in September 2021.

Curtis and Chastity were promoted at the same announcement. Ryan had spent the last two seasons as Athletic Performance Data Manager for the team to deserve the promotion.

Likewise, he was also the Director of Athlete Performance and Safety at the Korey Stringer Institute (University of Connecticut) from 2018 to 2019.

Ryan also had experience working as a strength coach and athletic trainer for the US Marine Corps and US Tennis Association. He obtained his master’s degree in kinesiology from Kansas State in 2009 and earned a Ph.D. in exercise science from UConn in 2019. 

The San Antonio Spurs franchise is currently home to experienced and abled personnel in all sectors to ensure the best results every NBA season.