The Spurs are entering the new season with something every contender wants and every opponent hates: a starting five without an obvious target.
By the time late September rolls around and training camps open, San Antonio will probably keep the same core group it used last season, with the only possible change being Julian Champagnie in place of Tobias Harris. Either way, the picture stays the same. The Spurs may have one of the most complete starting units in the NBA, and they’re firmly in the top three.
That matters because there’s no easy way in against them. Not every starter is elite at every skill, but there isn’t a clear weak link either.
No one jumps off the screen as a player teams can ignore or pick on. When opponents see the Silver and Black, it turns into pure pick-your-poison basketball.
Victor Wembanyama is the centerpiece of that problem. He’s one of the most dangerous lob threats in NBA history, and his length forces defenses to keep him out of the paint.
If that wasn’t enough, he can also stretch the floor with threes. When he gets rolling, defenses are basically at his mercy.
He didn’t average 25 points per game by accident.
And then there’s the other side of the floor, where Wembanyama is already a landmark presence. The Alien is the first-ever unanimous Defensive Player of the Year. Enough said.
De’Aaron Fox adds a different kind of pressure. He showed last season that he doesn’t have to monopolize the ball to bring the downhill attack he’s known for. Swipa had averaged about 26 PPG before joining the Spurs, and he flashed that scoring punch more than a few times after arriving.
He’s also a sneaky-good team defender, which gives San Antonio even more flexibility. He usually doesn’t have to chase the opponent’s top ball-handler, but when he has matched up with guys like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, he’s made them work.
Stephon Castle gives the Spurs another layer entirely. He turned in a couple of 30-point triple-doubles that looked straight out of prime Russell Westbrook, except he’s doing it with more promising shooting touch at a much younger age. Castle is learning how to create his own offense while also setting up everyone around him.
That combination of improved three-level scoring and elite passing makes him a headache for defenses. On top of that, he’s one of the best perimeter defenders in the league. There’s no debate there.
The two wings round out a starting five that doesn’t really have a crack in it.
Devin Vassell can score from anywhere on the court. When Wembanyama and Castle were out and Denver blocked San Antonio’s path to the next round of the NBA Cup, Vassell went off for 36 points. Big nights are nothing new for him.
He also got back to playing the kind of tough, physical defense that slipped for a season or two. The Georgia native has become more active as a playmaker on that end too, picking off steals and swatting blocks from guards and bigs.
Julian Champagnie brings another threat. If he loses you for a second, he can bury eight threes on you.
The St. John’s product scored 20 or more points nine times, which fits a player who can pop for a big night about once every nine games.
As the fourth or fifth option, that’s plenty dangerous.
Champagnie isn’t the defensive playmaker some of his teammates are, but he’s solid there too. Like Fox, he’s a dependable team defender, and he doesn’t give opponents an easy place to attack.
That’s what makes this group so unusual. Some of the best teams in the league still have obvious soft spots in their starting lineups.
Isaiah Hartenstein’s offensive game is limited to a push shot, which hurts OKC’s spacing. Denver has bad defenders everywhere.
Even New York has players who are pretty weak offensively.
San Antonio doesn’t have that problem. The Spurs’ mix of creation, shooting, size and defense is unusually complete.
They’ve got five players who force opponents into tough choices, and that kind of balance is a serious edge. Expect them to lean on it all season.
In Other News...
Julian Champagnie May Be More Important To The Spurs Than Fans Realize
Julian Champagnie spent last season looking like the kind of complementary forward every good roster needs, the sort who doesnt always grab headlines but keeps lineups balanced when hes on the floor. His overall impact showed up in the Spurs on/off numbers, and that kind of quiet value matters on a team still sorting out which role players can reliably fit around its young core. He has already shown he can handle that supporting job effectively, which is part of why he keeps coming up as someone the Spurs may need more than casual observers realize.
The next step is less about flash and more about tightening the edges of his game. Better shooting consistency, more physical play and stronger rebounding would make his minutes even harder to take away, especially with his fit alongside the teams key pieces already pointing in the right direction. If those pieces fall into place, Champagnie could move from useful to indispensable, which is exactly the kind of leap that can quietly reshape a rotation. [Read more 🡒]
Stephon Castle Is Earning Praise For What Could Set Him Apart
Stephon Castles second NBA season gave the Spurs more evidence that his value goes well beyond the box score. He finished the year averaging 16.7 points and 7.4 assists, but the attention around him has increasingly centered on what he can do on the other end, where his defensive versatility has already started to separate him from a lot of young guards.
Castles trainer, Olin Simplis, has been among the loudest voices pointing to that side of his game, praising his ability to handle multiple positions and turn defense into a calling card. It is the kind of trait that can make a player stand out in a league filled with scorers, and it helps explain why some around the Spurs see a different kind of ceiling for Castle even as comparisons to bigger-name wings continue to swirl. [Read more 🡒]
Carter Bryant Has One Big Step Left In Spurs Core Build
Carter Bryants early run with the Spurs has already given the organization something it values deeply: a young wing who can make life hard on opposing scorers. His defensive profile has stood out from the start, giving San Antonio reason to believe it has another long, versatile piece to work with as the roster keeps taking shape around its next core.
The bigger question is how far Bryant can go on the other end. His development as a three-point shooter and a more reliable scorer will go a long way toward determining whether he becomes a useful stopper or a true two-way difference-maker, and for a Spurs team still building toward title-level expectations, that kind of offensive jump could end up being the final piece they are waiting on. [Read more 🡒]