Mitch Johnson, who took over as acting head coach after Pop suffered a stroke in November, led the team to a 31-46 record while Popovich was out. At only 38 years old, he takes over as the full-time head coach.

San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich is stepping down after 29 seasons, six months after being sidelined by a stroke, the NBA team announced on Friday.Speculation about Popovich's ability to continue in his role as Spurs head coach has swirled since he suffered a mild stroke in November which left him unable to coach the team for the rest of the recently concluded regular season.

Some of the key moments in the career of San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich, who stepped down as coach Friday: Saying the team needed a change in direction, general manager Gregg Popovich fired coach Bob Hill and named himself coach on the same day that star center David Robinson was returning to the lineup. The Spurs were 3-15 at the time.