Erik Spoelstra now longest-tenured coach in American pro sports after Mike Tomlin’s exit

When longtime Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin stepped down from his role on Tuesday after a 19-year run with the franchise, he sparked a shakeup among the longest-tenured coaches in major American professional sports. No active coach in the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, MLS or the WNBA had spent more time with one team than Tomlin. Following his departure, Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra holds the title of the country’s longest-tenured coach, and he has a five-season lead on the next-most-experienced coach — Jon Cooper of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Spoelstra, now in Year 18 with the Heat, did not relish in that reality, though. Instead, he said Tomlin’s exit “really bummed me out” and that he wishes he was not the holder of his new rare title.

“Some people could look at that as a badge of honor,” Spoelstra said in a pregame media availability session. “I look at that as really a disappointment to this profession, that there’s not more coaches that are given an opportunity to work through things. For sure, my greatest opportunities of growth have been from disappointing seasons, where we really went to work during the offseason to find ways to get better.”

Longest-tenured coaches in major U.S. sports

Coaches do not build lengthy careers without sustained success and championship pedigree, and each of the most experienced leaders in sports possess those traits. Spoelstra is a two-time NBA champion and widely regarded as one of the league’s greatest coaches of all time. Tomlin racked up more than 200 career victories and never logged a losing season.

The Steelers fanbase’s faith in Tomlin wavered in the final stanza of his tenure, though, and things became untenable this season despite Pittsburgh winning the AFC North.

“My video room has sent me interview clips of coach Tomlin for years,” Spoelstra said. “I just love everything he’s about. He’s a coach’s coach, super motivational in how he articulates his thoughts.”

Spoelstra’s leash, meanwhile, remains long despite the Heat having gone more than a decade since winning their last championship. Miami last reached the NBA Finals in 2023 and has been a playoff team every year under Spoelstra’s watch. His squads have also consistently exceeded expectations. That 2022-23 team, for instance, reached the finals despite entering the playoffs as the Eastern Conference’s No. 7 seed.