San Antonio Spurs aim to boost their defense with the addition of assistant coach Sean Sweeney.
SAN ANTONIO — When he was in Sacramento, San Antonio Spurs point guard De’Aaron Fox was familiar playing against new team assistant coach Sean Sweeney and is now glad he is on the same team.
“With Sean playing against those Dallas teams, just their (defensive) philosophies were always a tough thing to get by,” Fox said.
Sweeney was added to the team in June 2025 after spending four years in Dallas as Jason Kidd’s first assistant.
Known for his expertise in defensive schemes and a big reason the Mavericks were in the 2024 NBA Finals, Sweeney’s addition couldn’t come at a better time. The Spurs finished near the bottom of the NBA in team defense last season (23rd) with a defensive rating of 116.3.
And with Sweeney on the coaching staff, you can expect the Spurs defensive focus to elevate next season.
“I’ve had good games against Sean, but the way he teaches, it definitely makes it tough on a ball handler,” said Fox.
Defense will be the team’s anchor next season new head coach Mitch Johnson said at Media Day.
Led by defenders such as Victor Wembanyama, Stephon Castle, Jeremy Sochan, Sweeney’s impact could vault the Spurs into the top 10 defenses in the league next season.
And Fox can see the pairings meshing well this upcoming season.
“His teams have historically turned teams over well and been able to play in transition. I think we have the guys, I think we have the athleticism to do that as well.”
Coach Johnson shared his confidence in Sweeney (and Corliss Williamson) and expressed how much they will fit in San Antonio.
“We felt really good about the people that we brought in,” he said. “We feel they are our type of people and about the right stuff.”
Beyond the defensive side of the floor, Sweeney is credited for developing Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo into the megastar that he is now and potentially doing the same for Wembanyama.
But it begins on defense and Sweeney’s addition might have been one of the biggest offseason acquisitions the Spurs made.
“We’re just looking to implement that and also continue to be (defensively) aggressive in what we do,” Fox said.