Player The Methodical Meritocracy of Maestro Mitch Johnson and his Many Minions

The last third of the season will be a great test for the coaches and the team. So far so good, though as we sit at 37-16. If we start clicking on offense as the playoffs draw closer, my assessment of the coaching staff will radically shift. The Mavs game on 2/7 may have been a fluke, but, if it's an homage to the Spur's stone-cutter's mythos, OMG! So cool to get what is likely a glimpse of the future with last night's game.
 
Is Brett Brown still on the coaching staff? I thought he retired.

That MF Jimmy Baron getting to coach an All-Star Game... maybe he can find a way to quickly ruin Curry and KD's shots.

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I will admit that there may be a more methodical plan in place for this young team than I was sensing 3 weeks or 3 months ago. I've sworn otherwise in emotional game moments in our threads here, no doubt. I am starting to entertain the possibility that Mitch might be a capable orchestrator. As the team is coalescing into a juggernaut, or at least showing that potential, there is no way that health and coaching are not part of the equation. The last 1/3 of the season will be telling but, my god, we are on the heels of the top 2 teams in the league and have the chance to have home court through the first 3 rounds of the playoffs if not the whole damn thing! Still a lot of hooping ahead, but, these 7-3 stretches where it seems like Mitch doesn't know what he's doing and Castle is a complete tradeable failure are the luxury of the fans of a championship contender. If Mitch is truly the genius that some claim (Brook Lopez for one), he may have a masterful plan unfolding that will have us peaking at the playoffs with new schemes that will not be game-planned by opponents. Even if today is the peak of our season, gotta tip my hat AND doff my cap to Maestro Mitch and his Many Minions.

Just seeing how Wemby is barking defensively coverages like he's a decorated field commander and our 3-headed Hydra of guards can skew elite on offense or defense is pretty scary. If Wemby wins this soon, the league is fucked. 3 or more years away from his realistic prime would be insane. OKC and their Edward Scissorhands defensive approach might not be a true dynasty in the making. Did the primetime Lakers, Jordan's Bulls or our beloved Spurs lose 3 in a row to a young up-and-coming conference rival in their primes? This team is growing by leaps and bounds and there is so much room for improvement individually and as a team. I don't see another squad like this in the league right now. If we falter this season in the playoffs for whatever reason, I feel fully confident that we will come back with a vengeance and extra wisdom and motivation. I am starting to see a possible path to another banner this June, too.

Kudos to you Mitch et al!
 
I hear rumors behind the scenes second hand that staffers feel he is being "propped up" to succeed. Even if that were true, I think he's had a pretty good start in his first real year, and not just because of the winning record. His rotations typically make sense to me, and gone are the decades of Pop's whimsical choices.

Wright has given him boys scouts to work with, which helps.
 
The Truth #6 said:
I hear rumors behind the scenes second hand that staffers feel he is being "propped up" to succeed. Even if that were true, I think he's had a pretty good start in his first real year, and not just because of the winning record. His rotations typically make sense to me, and gone are the decades of Pop's whimsical choices.

Wright has given him boys scouts to work with, which helps.
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What does this even mean? Isn't it an organization's duty to prop all of their employees up to succeed? Would we rather the organization set him up to fail?
 
scott said:
What does this even mean? Isn't it an organization's duty to prop all of their employees up to succeed? Would we rather the organization set him up to fail?
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I think it means that PAFTO has already decided on Mitch to be the successor, instead of opening up the floor and considering other experienced head coaches like Kerr, Mike Malone etc for the job interviews
 
Have to admit that there are a few very close games that we lost if Mitch made other decisions and it was frustrating.

But still, this is his 1st year as a head coach and he is one of the youngest HC in the league (think only Will Hardy and Joe Mazzula are younger than him).

Hope he can see great coaching and decisions from him for rest of season and in the playoffs
 
scott said:
What does this even mean? Isn't it an organization's duty to prop all of their employees up to succeed? Would we rather the organization set him up to fail?
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I think the implication is, from how I interpreted this comment, simply, is that he isn't especially smart or talented and that the team success is due to a multitude of other people contributing to the team's success.

To clarify, I'm not endorsing this assessment of Mitch 100%.

To your question about the organization's duty, before Mitch, we hadn't prioritized top assistant coaches. In part, that's because we had Pop and the team wasn't ready to win. But success wasn't a priority. I think it's good timing for Mitch that he's coming along when it is also time to start winning. That's my interpretation, mostly.

But I think organizations can often be divided and not speak with the same voice. I remember in college football when UT Austin hired Charlie Strong. He definitely did not have the full organizational support behind him, for example.
 
The Truth #6 said:
I think the implication is, from how I interpreted this comment, simply, is that he isn't especially smart or talented and that the team success is due to a multitude of other people contributing to the team's success.

To clarify, I'm not endorsing this assessment of Mitch 100%.

To your question about the organization's duty, before Mitch, we hadn't prioritized top assistant coaches. In part, that's because we had Pop and the team wasn't ready to win. But success wasn't a priority. I think it's good timing for Mitch that he's coming along when it is also time to start winning. That's my interpretation, mostly.

But I think organizations can often be divided and not speak with the same voice. I remember in college football when UT Austin hired Charlie Strong. He definitely did not have the full organizational support behind him, for example.
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Thanks for the elaboration. The idea that Mitch isn’t smart doesn’t compute for me… he may be overly rigid but I’ve not ever seen anything to make me believe he isn’t smart… but I’m also just an observer
 
scott said:
Thanks for the elaboration. The idea that Mitch isn’t smart doesn’t compute for me… he may be overly rigid but I’ve not ever seen anything to make me believe he isn’t smart… but I’m also just an observer
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Its a weird observation because many before he was head coach were glowing from what I heard about how much of a future star and head coach he already was....
 
I think it's worked out well this year. But when he was hired, the reaction on Spurstalk was, I would say, mostly highly negative. I recall zero fans hoping that Mitch would be hired as the head coach before it happened.

I would say Mitch is lucky.

Pop would also say that he himself was extremely lucky in being gifted Tim Duncan.

And that's ok.

It's really all about what Mitch does with this opportunity.
 
The Truth #6 said:
I think it's worked out well this year. But when he was hired, the reaction on Spurstalk was, I would say, mostly highly negative. I recall zero fans hoping that Mitch would be hired as the head coach before it happened.

I would say Mitch is lucky.

Pop would also say that he himself was extremely lucky in being gifted Tim Duncan.

And that's ok.

It's really all about what Mitch does with this opportunity.
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The consensus feeling was definitely that we should have gone for someone more experienced… but the consensus feeling on SpursTalk is pretty irrelevant. I’m more curious about this second half behind the scenes feeling from the staff… the coaching staff of course who are ostensibly his staff… just seems odd
 
scott said:
The consensus feeling was definitely that we should have gone for someone more experienced… but the consensus feeling on SpursTalk is pretty irrelevant. I’m more curious about this second half behind the scenes feeling from the staff… the coaching staff of course who are ostensibly his staff… just seems odd
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The consensus on Spurstalk was jaded by feeling that Mitch was just doing Pop's bidding and so many wanting not Pop as coach with so many on there feeling Mitch was just an extension and/or lackey of Pop.
 
I definitely think Mitch has the makings of being a great NBA coach down the line, but he isn't right now tbh. Hopefully he grows into it quickly (he's starting to show signs) but the FO can't let it limit this team if he proves to be the difference between winning and losing come playoff time.
 
I mean I was not a fan of the Mitch hiring but at this point people looking to hate on Mitch are just wrong. People finding weird shit to say like he's been propped up to succeed or that he's not very smart are lol. Just give the man his fucking credit. He's doing great!
 
It helps to have a true superstar on the team. Everyone else falls into place. It helps even more when the superstar wants to win more than he wants anything else
 
10 games ago. A lot of moaning and bitching was going on about Mitch Johnson. He made some key adjustments- moving a slumping Unc to the bench was key and the Spurs have been cooking well on both ends since then. I hope the moaners and bitchers give props to Mitch now for doing his part.
 
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