The Spurs are keeping Julian Champagnie in the fold, but they’re doing it with a little contract maneuvering that gives both sides a bigger payday and gives San Antonio a useful salary slot to work with later.
According to Shams Charania of ESPN, the team will turn down Champagnie’s $3MM option for the 2026/27 season and instead lock him into a new three-year, $45MM agreement. Technically, it’s an extension off the $3MM he was set to make in 2025/26, but the practical effect is simple: Champagnie is now under contract for three more seasons, not one.
The deal comes at a nice moment for Champagnie, who is celebrating his 25th birthday by cashing in far beyond where his career started. The former undrafted wing out of St.
John’s began his NBA run on a two-way deal with Philadelphia in the 2022 offseason. The Sixers waived him in February 2023, and San Antonio grabbed him a couple days later.
That move ended up paying off for the Spurs. Champagnie impressed down the stretch of the 2022/23 season and earned a four-year, $12MM contract in July 2023. Now he’s set to make more next season than he did over his first four years combined.
On the floor, he’s become a steady part of San Antonio’s rotation. Champagnie appeared in 82 regular season games in each of the last two seasons, and in 2025/26 he stepped into a full-time starting role.
He averaged 11.1 points and 5.8 rebounds while hitting 38.1% of his threes in 27.6 minutes per game. For a Spurs team that reached the NBA Finals in 2026 before falling to the Knicks, he’s an important floor spacer.
The contract structure also has cap implications. By declining the option and extending now, the Spurs push Champagnie’s cap hit higher in 2026/27, while lowering it in 2027/28 and 2028/29. The move also gives San Antonio another mid-sized number it can potentially use in future upgrades.
It’s a solid price for a 3-and-D player who has helped the Spurs climb the standings, and the team still has room to operate. Cap expert Yossi Gozlan says San Antonio is tentatively $28.0MM below the luxury tax line, which leaves the club with the ability to use the full mid-level exception. The Spurs also retain plenty of flexibility to make trades if they choose.
In Other News...
Spurs Linked To Veteran Frontcourt Move That Would Change Everything Around Wemby
The Spurs are still looking for ways to strengthen the roster around Victor Wembanyama, and one name that keeps surfacing in league chatter is John Collins. San Antonios cap flexibility gives it room to explore a move like that, and the idea is obvious enough on paper: add another frontcourt piece who can ease some of the burden on Wembanyama while the franchise keeps building toward a more complete lineup.
Chicago is also regularly mentioned as a team in the mix, which only adds to the sense that this could become one of the more watched veteran frontcourt situations of the offseason. The fit question is the real sticking point for San Antonio, though, because Collins shooting has been inconsistent and his rim protection has not always matched the demands of pairing with a big like Wembanyama. [Read more 🡒]
Keldon Johnson Suddenly Finds Himself At The Center Of A Spurs Decision
Keldon Johnsons place in San Antonio has become one of the more interesting personnel questions of the summer. After winning Sixth Man of the Year, he is still heading into the final year of his contract, and the Spurs now have to decide whether they want to commit to him long term once the moratorium ends on July 6. For a player who has been part of the teams core through a transitional stretch, the timing makes this more than a routine extension talk.
The issue is not just about reward, either. Johnsons game has been uneven enough that the Spurs have real reason to weigh their options, and his future says a lot about where they think the roster is headed. If the front office decides to move cautiously, it would fit with a team trying to balance development, lineup fit, and a few new pieces that could change how much room Johnson has in the frontcourt rotation. [Read more 🡒]
Kawhi Leonard Rumor Just Pulled The Spurs Back Into Focus
A Kawhi Leonard ripple can still pull the Spurs back into the conversation, even years after he left. Leonards name is once again tied to San Antonio in a way that matters, because any hint about where he would be willing to go next inevitably reopens old questions about what the Spurs mean in the leagues larger star map. For a franchise that has spent the past several seasons building forward, that kind of unexpected relevance is hard to ignore.
The bigger picture is what makes this feel worth watching. Toronto and the Clippers have been in real discussions about a possible Leonard move, and the deal mechanics are messy enough to shape the rest of the market around it, from the salary being sent out to the picks and young players both sides might have to weigh. Add in the Clippers youth movement and the cloud hanging over their cap situation, and the Spurs suddenly find themselves adjacent to a storyline that could still take another turn before it settles. [Read more 🡒]