By all metrics, Mitch Johnson has exceeded expectations in his first full season as coach of the San Antonio Spurs. San Antonio is on pace to win 55 games, Johnson is set to coach the All-Star Game, and he is a Coach of the Year candidate.
That's all well and good, but he's also had some growing pains as a young head coach. His rotations sometimes have no rhyme or reason to them. If a player gets hot, then he might bench him down the stretch, or he might go with a player who's struggling.
Johnson also seems too conservative with his coaches' challenges, failing to challenge crucial calls that could swing games. Then there are some of the more questionable coaching decisions.
Taking the ball out of De'Aaron Fox's hands and [giving the keys to Stephon Castle](https://airalamo.com/frustrating-stephon-castle-strategy-eerily-similar-hated-spurs-experiment) has limited Fox's effectiveness while empowering Castle. No doubt about it, there is definitely a learning curve with this team, and not just with the young roster but also with their young coach.
Mitch Johnson has made some questionable lineup decisions
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In the Spurs' recent loss to the Charlotte Hornets, Johnson made a highly questionable call by benching Dylan Harper. Harper was carving up the Hornets' defense, scoring 20 points through three quarters, only to be chained to the bench in the fourth.
Obviously, that didn't go over well with fans, who were perplexed as to why he didn't go back to Harper. Moreover, he has also been hesitant to play Fox, Harper, and Castle together.
That's despite him already laying the groundwork by having Fox play shooting guard and spacing the floor. Speaking of Fox, he has been inconsistent at best, though it's hard to fault him.
He's been tasked with playing more off-ball, though he has gotten more reps playing with the ball of late. Putting the ball back in Fox's hands would boost the Spurs' offense and help Fox get back to playing like a star consistently.
Mitch Johnson is still learning on the job with the Spurs
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Johnson has made several baffling decisions, no doubt, but to his credit he has made some smart moves as well. He wisely decided to bounce Jeremy Sochan from the rotation, prioritizing spacing in the process.
San Antonio has been better for it. He also experimented with playing Luke Kornet and Victor Wembanyama together. That has proven to be a strong pairing, one that he's gone back to time and time again.
More recently, he benched Harrison Barnes, who had started 350 straight games, for Julian Champagnie. That shows Johnson isn't afraid to make tough decisions.
Those are definitely some positives. But with the Spurs struggling of late, Johnson will need to continue tinkering to get the most out of this roster.