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As a player, Elie won a championship with San Antonio

The San Antonio Spurs today announced that Mario Elie has been named an Assistant Coach. He replaces Mike Brown who was hired as an assistant by the Indiana Pacers.

"We're all very happy to welcome Mario Elie to our staff," said Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich. "He'll once again be an important part of our organization. As a player Mario always exhibited a good knowledge of the game and his attitude and work ethic will serve him well."

During his 11-year career Elie captured three NBA Championships - he was a member of the Rockets championship teams in 1994 and 1995 and then played for the Spurs squad that won the title in 1999. In his career Elie appeared in 732 regular season games averaging 8.6 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 25.5 minutes. A seventh round pick in the 1985 NBA Draft, Elie played for Philadelphia, Golden State, Portland, Houston, San Antonio and Phoenix during his career. Prior to making his NBA debut with the Sixers during the 1990-91 season he played in Portugal, Argentina, Ireland, the USBL, the WBL and the CBA. Elie spent two seasons with the Spurs after signing with the team as a free agent on 1/21/99.

"I'm extremely excited to join an extraordinary group of players and coaches," said Elie. "The Spurs have a great organization and it is the perfect place for me to start my coaching career. I'll be able to learn a lot from Coach Pop and his staff."