Romwel Anzures

San Antonio Spurs’ Jeremy Sochan duing his visit in Manila. Photo handout/ NBA Philippines.

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ABS-CBN News

<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1746605352885IMG_6917.jpeg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="San Antonio Spurs’ Jeremy Sochan duing his visit in Manila. Photo handout/ NBA Philippines."/>San Antonio Spurs’ Jeremy Sochan duing his visit in Manila. Photo handout/ NBA Philippines.MANILA — Jeremy Sochan and the San Antonio Spurs’ program will be spearheaded by a familiar face as they enter a new phase.</div>Not only will the five-time NBA champion team be under a new head coach in Mitch Johnson, but the Spurs will have former long-time mentor Gregg Popovich as their newest President of Basketball Operations moving forward.Popovich, who suffered a stroke in November 2024, recently stepped down from his San Antonio coaching post after leading the franchise to 1,422 regular season wins and five NBA titles in 29 seasons.<div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/sports/basketball/2025/5/6/its-time-popovich-passes-spurs-torch-to-johnson-1219">READ: Popovich passes Spurs torch to Johnson</a></div>Sochan, who has been under Coach Pop since his rookie year in the league, has nothing but great words to offer for the winningest coach in NBA history.“Pop is a person who is a person that sees basketball, but also, is an ultimate human being,” said the Polish-American during his media availability on Wednesday at the NBA Philippines Office in Taguig City.“I’m truly blessed and honored to be coached by someone who has the most wins in the NBA. You could say he&#x27;s the best coach ever to live, but it&#x27;s all about just growing, learning, and having fun with that process. So, again, I’m super blessed.”“I&#x27;m just happy that he&#x27;s still a part of the organization, he&#x27;s still having some involvement in decisions and just like culture and identity,” he added.Sochan, who was the 9th overall pick in the 2022 Draft, posted 11.4 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 0.8 steals, and half a block in 54 appearances during the 2024-25 season.Coincidentally, his two highest season scoring outputs for the Spurs came both while playing for their two head coaches.He previously put up 22 points, nine rebounds, four assists, and a block for the Popovich-led squad last October 29 vs. the Houston Rockets — four days before Coach Pop was sidelined due to his illness.He then delivered his season-high of 23 markers on top of nine boards, and two dimes for Johnson when they defeated the Philadelphia 76ers last March 22.And while this is a small sample size, Sochan is confident that these can reflect how the Spurs can also excel under their new coach’s tutelage.“I&#x27;ve been with him since the start of my career,” he said of Johnson. “We&#x27;ve been to Poland together for Basketball Without Borders, so the relationship is there.”“So I&#x27;m super excited. I&#x27;m happy for him. He&#x27;s been working hard, and he deserves it. It&#x27;s going to be cool to learn from someone like Mitch. Next season, our goal is to make the playoffs and go as far as we can,” he furthered.San Antonio went 32-45 while being under Johnsons’ leadership last season.<div>This was not only a 12-win improvement from their 22-60 record in 2023-24, as they also achieved this while missing star center Victor Wembanyama who sat out their last 30 games due to a blood clot in his right shoulder. RELATED VIDEO:  <iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gKTVy1LDjmk?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></div>

Jeremy Sochan and the San Antonio Spurs’ program will be spearheaded by a familiar face as they enter a new phase.

Jeremy Sochan and the San Antonio Spurs’ program will be spearheaded by a familiar face as they enter a new phase.

'El Jefe': New Spurs president Gregg Popovich ‘best coach ever,’ says Jeremy Sochan

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'El Jefe': New Spurs president Gregg Popovich ‘best coach ever,’ says Jeremy Sochan

Rom Anzures,

ABS-CBN News

Published May 07, 2025 05:01 PM PHT

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Updated May 07, 2025 08:49 PM PHT

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