The San Antonio Spurs finally got a result they could feel good about in Las Vegas, rolling past the New York Knicks 70-49 on Saturday night for their first Summer League win.
It wasn’t exactly a revenge game, even if the scoreboard looked lopsided. The setting is nowhere near the NBA Finals, and only Pacôme Dadiet, Mohamed Diawara, and Carter Bryant were on the rosters for that stage. Still, after dropping all three games at the California Classic and then falling in their Vegas opener to the Atlanta Hawks, the Spurs badly needed something to go right.
Bryant gave them that spark. He finished with 19 efficient points and led all scorers, knocking down seven of 10 shots from the field. That kind of confidence matters for a player whose offense is clearly a point of emphasis for San Antonio, especially after not showing much shooting confidence in the regular season.
Rookie Tarris Reed Jr. also turned in a useful night, posting five points and nine rebounds. He grabbed five defensive boards and four more on the offensive glass, and even without a blocked shot, his physical style stood out. Reed was on the floor, chasing loose balls and bringing the kind of edge that can help him stick.
The win wasn’t spotless, though. Maliq Brown’s defense remains his calling card, but his offense still looks like a work in progress.
In 24 minutes, he took only two shots, though he did make both. For the Spurs, the challenge is obvious: if they want Brown to have an NBA role, he has to become at least passable on that end.
Summer League always invites big reactions, but San Antonio is still trying to use these games to sort through its roster and find someone who can stand out. Barring another free agency move, one of the second-round picks is expected to get a non-guaranteed contract for the season. Jayden Quaintance, who has yet to play, and Reed are already on standard rookie contracts, but there is still room on the roster.
In Other News...
Spurs Suddenly Face A Real De'Aaron Fox Contract Problem
De'Aaron Fox gave the Spurs the kind of postseason burst they were hoping for at the start, but the finish line looked a lot different. His play tailed off in the Western Conference Finals and then dropped again in the NBA Finals, enough to revive the old concerns that have followed him into San Antonio: whether the speed that made him such a dangerous guard is starting to fade, and whether that matters even more now that the games are at their biggest.
It is not just a short-term wobble, either. Fox is on a max deal worth $221.7 million over the next four years, and that kind of money changes the conversation fast when the production is uneven. Around the league, his contract has already drawn harsh reviews, which leaves the Spurs with a tricky question as they build around Victor Wembanyama: if Fox is not quite the co-star they envisioned, what exactly is the best way to use him? [Read more 🡒]
Julian Champagnie's Extension Signals A Bigger Spurs Squeeze Is Coming
Julian Champagnies new extension is another sign the Spurs are trying to thread a very narrow financial needle as they build around Victor Wembanyama, Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper. San Antonio chose a three-year, $45 million commitment rather than a longer one, a tell that the front office is already planning for the cap squeeze that comes with keeping a young core intact while preserving room for future moves.
The bigger picture is less about Champagnie alone than the way the Spurs are staggering contract decisions to avoid painting themselves into a corner. Every extension, every expiration date and every roster choice now has to fit a long-range plan, and that means the team is weighing how much flexibility it can afford to give up before the next wave of decisions arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Spurs Suddenly Face A Massive De'Aaron Fox Decision
With Victor Wembanyama now locked in on an extension, the Spurs are already looking ahead to the next phase of roster building, and that has put De'Aaron Fox squarely in the middle of the conversation. San Antonio is weighing whether to keep the guard as part of the core or use him as a way to reshape the roster and trim money, a decision that says as much about the teams long-term direction as it does about Foxs fit.
Brandon Ingram has surfaced as a possible target in that kind of shuffle, giving the Spurs a very different type of offensive piece to consider around Wembanyama. The idea is still fluid, and the larger question is whether San Antonio wants to lean into continuity with Fox or pivot toward a different lineup balance as the front office keeps sorting through its options. [Read more 🡒]