The Spurs spent the summer trying to fix a problem that became impossible to ignore once the games got bigger: their frontcourt started leaking minutes in the playoffs.
San Antonio looked loaded inside during the regular season. Victor Wembanyama emerged as the best big man in the game, and Luke Kornet gave them one of the league’s better backup options. On paper, that combination gave the Spurs real heft in the paint heading into the postseason.
Then the playoffs happened. Kornet’s production fell hard, and the drop-off was brutal enough to change his role almost by the game. He averaged just 3.7 points in the postseason and eventually became hard to play, finishing the Finals at only eight minutes per game.
That slide pushed the Spurs into action. They added Tobias Harris to bring size and rebounding to the starting five, then used the first round of the NBA Draft to bring in Jayden Quantaince and Tarris Reed.
Even before this summer, San Antonio was often playing small. Wembanyama was the lone true giant in the starting group, while Julian Champagnie and Harrison Barnes were listed as power forwards despite being built more like wings or even shooting guards.
This offseason, the message was clear: fix the size issue.
“They were able to honestly have a pretty interesting draft with Tarris Reed Jr., Jayden Quaintance being there as well,” said Es Baraheni on the Athletic NBA Daily. “Those are two guys who I think will help their frontcourt spot.
I think a big issue for them in the playoffs was the fact that they were bleeding points when Luke Kornet was on the floor. Hopefully one of those young guys will be able to step in.”
Quaintance is set to miss most of his rookie year because of knee injuries, while Reed is expected to sit behind Kornet for now. Still, the Spurs now have more options and more pressure on Kornet, which should help stabilize that part of the rotation.
The other piece of the puzzle is Harris, who gives San Antonio the kind of starter it was missing. He can supply the size, rebounding, and shot creation the Spurs wanted in that spot, while also letting Stephon Castle and Devin Vassell settle into more natural roles.
“The big question for them is Tobias Harris,” Baraheni added. “Will he be able to fill in that role?
I think we looked at them all season and even in the Finals, where it was like a starting power forward with size, rebounding, and a little bit more shot creation is exactly what they need, and a veteran presence. And all of those things combined are Tobias Harris.”
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Mavericks Lock In Undrafted Standout With Intriguing Extension
Naji Marshall is now set to stick with Dallas a little longer after agreeing to a three-year contract extension, a move that gives the Mavericks more clarity with one of their more useful rotation pieces. The structure of the deal is noteworthy, too, with the salary declining from $18.2 million in the 2027/28 season to $16.7 million in 2029/30, a setup that keeps him trade-eligible and gives the team some flexibility down the road.
For a Mavericks team trying to build around dependable, adaptable players, Marshalls appeal is easy to understand. President Masai Ujiri pointed to his competitiveness and versatility as reasons he fits into the franchises future, and that kind of profile tends to matter even more when roster decisions start getting tight. The extension locks in an important piece, but it also leaves open the larger question of how Dallas will continue shaping the rest of its core. [Read more 🡒]
Wembanyama Has Spurs Fans Dreaming Bigger Than Just Stardom
Victor Wembanyama keeps turning the spotlight into something bigger for San Antonio. Fresh off a season that saw him lead the Spurs to the NBA Finals, win Defensive Player of the Year and finish as an MVP finalist, he has now been named the cover athlete for the standard edition of NBA 2K27. Add in CBS Sports placing him No. 2 on its list of the leagues faces, behind only LeBron James, and the message is hard to miss: the Spurs star is no longer just a building block, he is becoming one of the leagues defining names.
For Spurs fans, the appeal goes beyond the accolades and the marketing. Wembanyama already has the rsum of a franchise centerpiece, but the conversation around him is starting to sound like something larger, the kind of status reserved for players who shape the leagues image as much as its standings. San Antonio has spent years waiting for a player who could restore that kind of gravitational pull, and Wembanyamas latest honors only sharpen the question of how far this rise can go. [Read more 🡒]
Spurs Face Early Jayden Quaintance Decision That Could Shape His Rookie Year
Jayden Quaintances rookie year has already turned into a roster-management puzzle for the Spurs. The first-round pick is coming off knee surgery, and the expectation is that he will be sidelined for about six months, which puts his availability for next season in serious doubt before it even begins. For a team trying to map out its frontcourt rotation, that creates an early choice about how to handle a young big man whose development may matter just as much as his health.
San Antonio can afford to be patient, especially with other center options in the mix in Tarris Reed Jr. and Luke Kornet. The bigger question is whether the Spurs see more value in keeping Quaintance completely out for the season or finding a way to ease him back once he is cleared so he can get real game reps somewhere in the system. However they answer it, the decision will say a lot about how the Spurs want to balance long-term development against the realities of a season that starts without him. [Read more 🡒]