Happy birthday to Mitch Johnson

Over the last few months, we’ve been retracing Pop’s coaching tree, so it seems apropos to recognize, Mitch Johnson who celebrates his birthday today.

Mitch Johnson became an assistant coach with the Spurs, filling the void left by Tim Duncan, after three seasons as an assistant coach for the Austin Spurs. Johnson was part of the the 2018 championship that featured current San Antonio Spurs guard Derrick White.

Mitch, son of NBA player John Johnson, reflected on his father’s influence on his own game.

“He always talked to me in terms of the way you see the game, the way you got to think for your teammates, the way little nuances can give you an advantage. Looking back, I think that really did help me become a coach long before I knew I wanted to be a coach. Even now, I draw upon those references all the time.”

After four years of college ball at Stanford, Johnson spent three seasons playing in the G League and overseas in Europe before making the transition to coaching.

He served as a basketball coaching intern at Seattle University in 2011 before coaching in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League. Prior to his three year stint in Austin, spent one season as an assistant at the University of Portland in 2016.

Three years with Austin led to t San Antonio and last summer, Mitch Johnson served as coach of the Spurs Summer League in Las Vegas and Salt Lake City, getting first looks at Josh Primo and Joe Wieskamp.

Today, Mitch celebrates his 35th birthday. And hopefully he and the Spurs will bring home a “W” tonight as they face the Washington Wizards.

Happy birthday, Mitch.

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