New San Antonio Spurs Head Coach a Leader On and Off the Floor

Being a coach is a whole lot more than just drawing up X's and O's. It is about being a leader and being a trusted voice to lean on through times of struggle. But it is also about developing young men into complete individuals and helping them reach their full potential.

For former Stanford basketball standout and current San Antonio Spurs head coach, Mitch Johnson, his impact on the game stems far beyond the hardwood.

After longtime Spurs coach and NBA legend, Gregg Popovich, stepped down last week, Johnson was named the replacement. During his introductory press conference, a handful of former and current Spurs players were in attendance. One of those was Dejounte Murray, a current star for the New Orleans Pelicans who played for the Spurs from 2016-2022.

It is not common for players to attend a coach's introductory press conference, let alone a former player who now plays for another team. But for Murray, his relationship with Johnson is so special that he could not miss his former coach's big moment. You see, Johnson is way more than just a basketball coach to Murray-- he is also a lifelong mentor.

"He means the world to me, you know, the world to me," Murray said. "A lot of people don't understand. I try to keep my life story away from the internet, the social media, however you want to put it as much as I can just so I can heal from it.

"There's a time and a place for things, but that guy, I owe him so much because I was in a tough place in my life around 15 when I was trying to change my life. He came and got me, just everything from the knowledge, to teaching discipline, right from wrong, and building an AAU team for me.

"He was behind all of that, just really getting my life back on track. I was in a tough time and he just came and the rest is history."

Johnson and Murray are 10 years apart in age, with Murray being 28 and Johnson being 38, but they both grew up in the same community around Seattle, Washington. When Murray was a teen, he faced a troubled life that included gun violence, drugs and poverty.

He even faced a stint in a juvenile detention center. But thanks to Johnson's help in bailing him out, he not only was put on a strict academic plan to help him finish school, but Johnson also made sure to put him on a strict basketball training regimen to keep him out of trouble.

It was because of all that that Murray not only thrived and stayed out of trouble for the rest of his youth, but it was a major catalyst in helping him get to the NBA.

Then came the 2016 NBA Draft. During the pre-draft process, when the Spurs were interested in Murray, Johnson was able to land his first job with the organization as an assistant with the G-League's Austin Spurs after he caught the organization's attention with his coaching and communication acumen.

Then, shortly after, Murray was drafted 29th overall by San Antonio and played there until the end of the 2021-22 season.

Now, Murray is an NBA All-Star who has led the league in steals and has been named to an All-Defensive Team, while Johnson is getting the chance to turn the Spurs around and bring them back to championship contention. And it all started with a connection that the two were able to form when they were both starting out.