The Spurs Are No Longer Arriving - They’re Already Here
OKLAHOMA CITY - In a league where power usually shifts through blockbuster trades or untimely injuries, the San Antonio Spurs are rewriting the script. No front-page transaction.
No catastrophic setback to a rival. Just three wins in 12 days over the defending champs - and suddenly, the West feels a whole lot different.
This wasn’t a fluke. This was a statement.
Three matchups, three wins. Two of them ended in garbage time.
One was on the road. And all three sent a clear message: the Spurs aren’t just ahead of schedule - they might be the best team in the NBA right now.
“You don’t lose to a team three times in a row, in a short span, without them being better than you,” said Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. “So we have to get better. We have to look in the mirror, and that’s everybody, from top to bottom, if we want to reach our ultimate goal.”
That’s not just honesty - that’s respect. And the Spurs have earned it.
The Spurs’ Depth Is Their Identity
What makes this Spurs team so dangerous isn’t just that they’re winning - it’s how they’re doing it. They’ve built a system where the offense hums for 48 minutes, regardless of who’s on the floor. Three guards - De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, and Dylan Harper - can initiate the offense, and none of them are the team’s best player.
That title still belongs to Victor Wembanyama, even if he’s working his way back from a calf injury and playing on a minutes limit. And yet, that’s the beauty of it.
Wemby doesn’t have to carry the team. He’s not being asked to dominate every possession.
Instead, he’s learning how to fit - and that’s what’s making the Spurs so dangerous.
“We’re never going to let the talent of one guy take away from the collective,” Wembanyama said after San Antonio’s 117-102 Christmas Day win in Oklahoma City. “That’s what allows us to beat great teams like that.”
This isn’t a hot streak. It’s the natural progression of a team that’s been growing since opening night - and still has room to level up.
A Challenger Emerges
Not long ago, the Thunder were off to the best start in NBA history. Now, after three straight losses to San Antonio, they’re just 2.5 games ahead of a team that looks like it’s built for the long haul.
And maybe that’s the most exciting part. The Spurs didn’t just win - they outlasted the Thunder, a team known for wearing opponents down with relentless execution. San Antonio flipped that script entirely.
“It’s not just that [the Thunder] win games, it’s the way that they win games and they just wear teams down,” said Fox, who dropped a game-high 29 points in Thursday’s win. “Just being able to withstand that and withstand the runs that they have and then go on runs of our own - I think that’s the more impressive part.”
The Spurs didn’t blink. They absorbed every Thunder run, answered with one of their own, and never let the game slip. That’s not just talent - that’s maturity.
Wembanyama’s Role Is Evolving - And That’s a Good Thing
Wembanyama finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds in 26 minutes. But his impact goes beyond the box score.
He’s learning how to manipulate defenses, not just overpower them. He’s reading coverages, setting up teammates, and picking his spots.
“What matters is to press where it hurts on the defense,” Wembanyama said.
There was one moment late in the game that summed it up. Wemby started dribbling toward the corner, seemingly with no plan, and found himself in a tight spot.
So he tossed the ball to Harrison Barnes and sprinted toward the rim. Barnes lobbed it back, and Wemby - in that only-he-can-do-this way - dropped the ball, picked it up, and dunked it in one motion.
It was messy. It was strange. And it worked.
“Sometimes, I still have these [moments] where it’s kind of crazy or not as much under control,” Wembanyama said. “But it used to be much more, and now it’s much more conscious.”
That kind of improvisation is becoming part of his game - and part of what makes this team so unpredictable. Spurs coach Mitch Johnson compared it to the unique reads made by stars like Nikola Jokić, Luka Dončić, and Gilgeous-Alexander.
It takes time for teammates to learn how to play off that kind of instinct. But once they do, it’s a nightmare for defenses.
And that’s what’s happening now. Wembanyama is no longer being forced into the post.
He’s finding ways to move within the flow of the offense, acting as the connective tissue between a trio of aggressive guards and a group of shooters spaced out in the corners. He’s not dominating the ball - he’s elevating the system.
“His willingness to just play the game and execute whatever the game is calling upon has been the most impressive,” Johnson said. “I think that is what will continue to grow over time - the pattern recognition of what they are trying to take away from us or dictate on their terms, and then how he can help manipulate things and create advantages for himself and our team.”
Winning Feels Different Now
Wembanyama has made it clear: winning doesn’t start with the box score. It starts behind closed doors.
It’s about the work, the chemistry, the culture. And now, that process is paying off in ways he’s never experienced at the NBA level.
“Each game is so intense, and it takes so much from you as a person, that the reward is just incredible,” he said. “I don’t know whatever molecule it is in the brain or in the blood, what hormone, but it just feels incredible.”
That feeling? It’s not going away anytime soon.
Because the Spurs aren’t just winning games - they’re building something real. And after three statement victories over the defending champs, it’s time to stop asking if they’re for real.
They are.