The San Antonio Spurs are walking into the 2026-27 NBA season with the kind of attention that turns up every sound around a team. That comes with the territory when a roster is suddenly viewed as a real title threat, and coach Mitch Johnson is not trying to fight it. He wants his team to lean into it.
Johnson said the Spurs’ aim is simple: keep getting better and become the best version of themselves. And when the spotlight gets louder, he sees that as part of the job.
"Our expectation is to continue to try to improve and be the best version of this team we can be. The expectations are kind of like big games, right?
There's added enthusiasm, excitement, criticism, opinion. I've been on both sides of it now in this league, and I'll take the expectations," the Spurs head coach declared.
San Antonio is entering the season with Victor Wembanyama at the center of it all, and the buzz around the rest of the group is growing fast. Wembanyama is being talked about as an NBA Most Valuable Player and Defensive Player of the Year candidate, while several teammates are also expected to draw award attention. Johnson is projected to be at least a Coach of the Year finalist, Dylan Harper could be in the mix for both Most Improved Player and Sixth Man of the Year, and Devin Vassell and Stephon Castle are also expected to pick up votes in major categories.
That kind of profile brings noise, and lots of it. The Spurs know that.
Johnson knows that. And the message inside the building is not to treat it like a problem, but as part of the expectations that come with being considered one of the league’s best teams.
Johnson and the Spurs have already made their goal plain: they want to end the season with the Larry O'Brien trophy. With that target in place, the pressure and the praise are both baked in. The task now is to handle the chatter, block out the clutter, and win more games than they did in their previous 82-game run.
For San Antonio, this is familiar ground. The franchise has spent decades living in the title-contender conversation, with championships in the 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s.
From George Gervin to David Robinson to Tim Duncan, the Spurs have long carried that standard. Now they are trying to extend that run into the 2020s, with Wembanyama and a rising core trying to turn expectations into results.
In Other News...
Spurs Camp Cuts Put New Focus On A Roster Battle To Watch
The Spurs trimmed their camp roster ahead of the 2026/27 season by waiving Taelon Peter, Malik Williams and Terry Taylor, part of the usual late-preseason sorting that comes with training camp competition. It is the kind of move that rarely grabs headlines on its own, but it does sharpen the focus on who is still standing as the Spurs continue to shape the back end of the roster.
Around the league, several other teams were making similar decisions, with the Hawks signing Giorgi Bezhanishvili to an Exhibit 10 deal, the Jazz adding Chance Moore and the Cavaliers waiving Jaxson Robinson. Cole Swider, DeAndre Williams and Steven Crowl were also let go by the Lakers, Clippers and Nuggets, respectively, underscoring how active this stretch can be as teams settle on their final looks before the season begins. [Read more 🡒]
Spurs May Be Seeing An Early Answer Behind Victor Wembanyama
The Spurs have spent the preseason looking for the kind of sturdy interior presence that can take some of the burden off Victor Wembanyama, and rookie center Tarris Reed Jr. has given them a promising early look. Reed has stood out for his work on the glass and around the rim, including a 17-rebound game against Utah and another strong showing against Phoenix, where he finished with three blocks and nine rebounds.
For a young big trying to earn trust in a crowded rotation, that sort of consistency matters as much as the headline numbers. Reed said he plans to keep bringing effort and persistence, and San Antonio will be watching to see whether that carries into a steady role as the season gets closer. The Spurs could use a reliable backup behind Wembanyama, and Reed has at least made that conversation worth having. [Read more 🡒]
Spurs Already Have One Big Concern With This Wembanyama Experiment
The Spurs spent a preseason look against Phoenixs backups trying something ambitious, dropping DeAaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Dylan Harper, Devin Vassell and Victor Wembanyama into a guard-heavy lineup that was always going to be watched closely. It was the first time that group had played together, according to coach Mitch Johnson, and even in a small sample it hinted at both sides of the equation San Antonio is trying to balance: enough ballhandling and perimeter talent to pressure defenses, plus the kind of size and activity Wembanyama brings to everything around him.
What showed up quickly, though, was the downside. The group flashed defensive promise, but the spacing and shooting issues were apparent early, leaving the Spurs with a familiar preseason question as they keep sorting through rotations before the games start to count. The idea is intriguing enough to keep revisiting, but the early returns suggest there is still plenty to iron out before this kind of look can be counted on in regular-season minutes. [Read more 🡒]