The Spurs may be part of the title conversation, but the road to the top of the NBA is crowded. Offseason movement has shifted the landscape, some familiar threats are still lurking, and a few new ones have entered the mix. For San Antonio, the challenge in 2026-27 is clear: survive the teams with the star power, depth, and championship habits that can wreck a season in a hurry.
At the top of that list sits Oklahoma City. The Thunder were San Antonio’s toughest opponent during the Spurs’ recent playoff run, and they’re positioned to be a problem again.
Jalen Williams will probably be back and healthy next season, and that only adds to a group already built on a winning culture, a deep roster, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is never one to be taken lightly. Revenge will be on their minds.
The New York Knicks come next, and there’s already a little extra baggage there. They’ve beaten the Spurs before, and that experience could give them a mental edge that matters.
Mike Brown’s team is battle-tested, Jalen Brunson has become one of the league’s biggest playoff risers, and the whole group plays with a physical, connected style. Add in the belief that they can win any game, and you’ve got a dangerous opponent.
Philadelphia is loaded with names that demand attention. LeBron James, Joel Embiid, Jaylen Brown and Tyrese Maxey make for an undeniably talented core.
There are obvious concerns - LeBron is old, and Embiid has bad knees - but betting against that much star power is risky. If they’re healthy, they’ll be one of the toughest teams in the league to deal with.
Chemistry will matter, but the source of their danger is simple: too much talent to ignore.
Miami gets its place on the list because of the combination of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Erik Spoelstra. Giannis has been stuck in purgatory with a Milwaukee team that couldn’t put the right pieces around him, but he remains one of the greatest players ever.
Spoelstra still carries the reputation of squeezing more out of less than almost anyone in the league. Put him with Giannis and Bam, and that’s not a pairing anyone in San Antonio can shrug off.
Denver rounds out the five, and the reason is obvious. The Nuggets didn’t make many major additions, but they don’t need to.
Nikola Jokic is one of the smartest offensive players the game has ever seen, and that alone keeps Denver in the hunt. Aaron Gordon’s injury last season mattered a lot, and if he’s healthy, their last postseason run doesn’t end in the first round.
A Joker-led team deserves respect, and Denver gets it here.
The Spurs should still expect to finish above these teams and create a meaningful gap. But if they’re going to get where they want to go, they’ll have to clear a path through some real heavy hitters first.
In Other News...
Chris Paul Still Cannot Believe What Wemby Went Through Before Spurs
Chris Paul spent part of his time in San Antonio doing more than just helping the Spurs on the floor. As a veteran voice in the locker room, he also served as a mentor for younger players, including Victor Wembanyama, and one of the most striking parts of that relationship was learning how different the French stars path to the NBA really was. Paul talked about the contrast between the American high school-to-college pipeline and the European academy system, where basketball development is built around a very different structure.
Wembanyama came up through that route in France with Nanterre 92s academy, which is a long way from the familiar U.S. model most NBA players know. For Paul, the broader lesson was less about basketball skill than about perspective, because Wembanyamas upbringing reflected a level of independence and a developmental track that simply does not exist for most young American prospects. [Read more 🡒]
Bleacher Report Ranking Spurs Sixth Is A Massive Snub
Bleacher Reports latest look at NBA starting fives gave the Spurs a spot that feels a little light for a team coming off a Western Conference title run. Even with the offseason shuffle around the league, San Antonios case is built on something a lot of contenders still have to prove: continuity. The group already knows how to play together, and compared with some of the teams slotted ahead of it, theres a strong argument that chemistry and health give the Spurs a cleaner foundation.
San Antonio also has a lineup that may not stay fixed for long, which only adds to the intrigue. Dylan Harper and Tobias Harris are both names to keep in mind as the season unfolds, and the Spurs have enough flexibility that performance could change the look of the starting five before long. For now, though, the bigger question is whether a team that just won the West really belongs chasing respect rather than setting the standard. [Read more 🡒]
The Spurs Are Becoming The Playoff Team Nobody Wants
The Spurs are starting to look like the kind of playoff opponent nobody in the West wants to see, because the roster gives them more than one way to beat you. Victor Wembanyama is already the obvious problem, a 7-foot-4 rim protector whose presence can warp a game plan, but the larger issue is how San Antonio can keep changing the terms of the matchup from one night to the next.
If teams load up on Wembanyama, the Spurs have downhill answers in Stephon Castle, De'Aaron Fox and Dylan Harper, and if the series turns into a more physical grind, they can lean on size and depth with Luke Kornet, Tarris Reed Jr. and eventually Jayden Quaintance. That flexibility is what makes them so awkward to prepare for, because they can survive a defensive slog or turn it into a faster, more open game without giving opponents much comfort either way. [Read more 🡒]