CHICAGO — Billy Donovan only has to walk down the hall from the San Antonio Spurs' coaches room at United Center to the Chicago Bulls' to find his old stomping grounds.

Tre Jones and Zach Collins find themselves in a similar boat. Faces they once shared a locker room with now inhabit the visitor's quarters. But the pair are playing a home game. As the San Antonio Spurs prepare to face the Chicago Bulls at United Center, they're walking into a reunion for several players and coaches on both sides of battle.

Donovan, who served as Chicago’s head coach from 2020-26, took an assistant coaching job with the Spurs this offseason. Jones and Collins, meanwhile, sit on the opposite bench after being traded from San Antonio in February 2025 for De’Aaron Fox.

For Johnson, the connections run deeper than different-colored threads.

“They’re on the long list of guys that were part of what we were building," Johnson said of Jones and Collins on Wednesday, "which is starting to see some of the benefits ... now."

The coach continued: "They’re part of the fiber of what we built.”

Jones and Collins were part of San Antonio’s rebuilding years, both before and after the arrival of Victor Wembanyama in 2023. They played alongside a young core that has since developed into a championship contender, though weren't around to see it through.

That didn’t diminish their contributions, at least in Johnson’s eyes. The two helped establish habits and relationships that continued well beyond their time in San Antonio.

Donovan’s connection to the Spurs, meanwhile, began long before he joined their coaching staff. Like Austin Spurs coach Chris Kent, Johnson spent time in a video room with his son.

“We were roommates," Johnson said, recalling his time with the Spurs’ G League affiliate. "We traveled around, spent a lot of time together. I got to know his family a little bit.”

That familiarity eventually became a professional partnership when Donovan joined Johnson’s staff over the summer. For the Spurs’ coach, the addition brought both experience and a trusted personality into the organization looking to return to the NBA Finals.

“Billy’s great,” Johnson said. “Great personality. Ton of experience. Obviously, his talent and résumé precedes him ... we’re very fortunate to have him. Probably mostly me.”

Chicago wasn’t the only stop on San Antonio’s road trip that offered a reunion.

San Antonio had already encountered another familiar face in Portland, where ex-Spurs big man Tiago Splitter continued building his coaching career with the Trail Blazers.

Splitter, who won an NBA championship with the Spurs in 2014, was on the opposite sideline when the two teams met in the first round of last season’s playoffs. San Antonio ultimately advanced in five games, beginning a postseason run that ended in the NBA Finals.

Even then, Splitter made clear his relationship with the organization hadn’t disappeared.

“I have big respect and love for this organization still,” Splitter said during the playoff series. “But at the end of the day, I’m doing my job. We want to beat them.”

His respect extended to Wembanyama, whose emergence has helped transform the Spurs from a rebuilding team into one capable of competing deep into the postseason.

"He’s honestly one of those players that is going to change the game,” Splitter said. “There’s no (comparison) ... I think he is changing the league. He was close to winning the championship last year. I think he’s going to be one of the greatest that ever played this game.”

Splitter’s work in Portland has also earned praise from his players, including Deni Avdija, who credited the former Spurs big man for his leadership after taking over as acting coach.

“He got thrown in a difficult situation,” Avdija said ahead of the first round in April. “He’s done a phenomenal job. He’s getting the best out of all of us and we love playing for him.”

Johnson shared a similar sentiment about his former colleague.

“He did a great job in Portland,” Johnson said. “Just happy he gets an opportunity here with some runway to grow and build it out. Happy he’s got some good guys in his locker room."

For San Antonio, the reunions offered reminders of how many people have played a part in the organization’s recent history. Some helped build its foundation. Others have since moved to new opportunities. One returned to Chicago wearing a different team’s colors.

The relationships, however, remain. Sometimes, they're just a hallway apart.