After six years with the San Antonio Spurs, assistant coach Darius Songalia has left the team by mutual agreement.
Songalia spoke with the Lithuanian site 15 Min, citing a lack of coaching career advancement with the Spurs and wanting to find other career opportunities.
"We met at the end of the month, and it was time to change the situation because I had no more opportunities to move up," he said. "I didn't want to continue be stagnant on the second assistant's bench. The assistants who occupied the first bench of the Spurs signed four-year contracts, so I had no chance to rise in the position."
Songalia says he spoke with head coach Gregg Popovich about his frustrations with upward movement and that Popovich told him there would not be any room for him to move up the coaching ranks.
"We talked about it with Pop (Popovich) and he said I better make a change because there's no room to go up on this team."
Songalia started with the Spurs in 2018 as a quality assurance assistant in the video department. He was promoted to an assistant coach in 2020.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nba/assistant-coach-songalia-leaves-spurs-cites-lack-of-coaching-career-advancement-with-team/ar-AA1ot6S2
Huh. So that's G-League coach (saw it coming, since replaced), the development coach who left for a coaching position, and now Songalia.
What we've learned: Pop is ever blunt lmao
The front bench assistants signed four-year contracts (pretty much aligns with Pop's five year deal, now four years left).
Seems like people are less patient to get promotions. Despite Songalia moving up since coming aboard, if there's no spot on the front bench there's no spot. At least he didn't stay just a year, use Spurs as cache on his resume to bounce.
Wish him well, hope he finds a place he likes and gives him a chance to advance how he likes.
