Victor Wembanyama didn’t just spend part of the summer in France for the scenery. He brought a chunk of the Spurs with him, and that matters.
Half of San Antonio’s roster followed the All-Star overseas, turning an optional offseason stretch into something that looks a lot more like buy-in. De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Dylan Harper, Harrison Barnes, Jordan McLaughlin and newly signed veteran Tobias Harris all made the trip, giving the defending Western Conference champions a chance to work together far from the usual noise.
For a team still carrying the sting of its 4-1 Finals loss to the 2026 champion New York Knicks, the setting makes sense. The Spurs just became the second-youngest team in NBA history to reach the Finals, trailing only the 1976-77 Portland Blazers at 25.03 years old.
San Antonio checked in at 25.56 years, just behind them, and came away with its first real heartbreak. That kind of loss is part of the climb.
The 2025 champion Oklahoma City Thunder went through it too, after a 4-2 second-round loss to the Dallas Mavericks in 2024, before getting over the top.
If the Spurs are looking ahead to a return trip in 2027, the Thunder loom as the biggest obstacle. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell headline a team with the best odds of standing in San Antonio’s way.
But August is not the time for the Spurs to stare down the bracket. It’s the time to build.
That’s exactly what this France trip is for. With no distractions and no return to everyday life, the players are getting uninterrupted time together on and off the floor.
R.C. Buford said the move says plenty about Wembanyama’s presence as a leader.
“The thing that you see about great leaders is very seldom do they resemble or match somebody else,” Buford said, per ESPN. “He’s not trying to be anybody but himself.
He sets a great example in his approach, in the way he takes care of his body, the way he connects with his family and with his teammates. There are not many times where 10 guys from a team are flying halfway around the world to go work out together.
That’s done because of the respect, admiration and joy that Victor brings.”
More Spurs players and staff are expected to join them in France, with work in Paris also on the schedule. Buford said on TrashTalk, “Our coaches and players are going to be here together next week, doing some work in Paris,” and added, “They’re coming over to see Victor, about eight or ten of them.”
The trip also gives San Antonio a head start on what could be a pivotal season for its backcourt and frontcourt mix. Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper are both coming off their first and second seasons, and both are projected to take another step. De’Aaron Fox’s role could shrink, but the Spurs are not moving on from him.
Even after a rough Finals showing, Fox remains part of the plan. ESPN’s Michael C.
Wright reported that team sources believe San Antonio might not have reached the Finals without what Fox gave them while playing through a high right ankle sprain. Wright also said the choice between Fox and Harper will be decided by Mitch Johnson based on what happens on the floor, with Johnson interested in trying all three guards together in some lineups.
San Antonio used that three-guard look in 18 games last season, and the results were ugly, producing a minus-26.9 net rating. Still, the group could look different after a full offseason together.
Johnson also gets a new piece in Tobias Harris, a veteran forward who can help stretch the floor around Fox, Castle and Harper. Harris is entering his 14th NBA season after averaging 13.3 points and shooting 36.8% from 3-point range with the Pistons last season, his best mark from deep in three years. Alongside Harrison Barnes, he gives the Spurs another option to fit different combinations around Wembanyama.
For a team that just made its first Finals run, this is how the next chapter starts: together, overseas, and already working.
In Other News...
Thunder Are Already Talking Revenge Against The Spurs
Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs spent the spring making life miserable for Oklahoma City, and the results were as decisive as they were memorable. San Antonio took both the regular-season and postseason series from the Thunder on the way to the 2026 Western Conference Finals, leaving a contender that prides itself on toughness with plenty of reason to circle the matchup when the calendar flips again.
Cason Wallace has already put a name to what comes next, acknowledging the Spurs control of the series while making clear the Thunder are carrying that disappointment into the new season. Oklahoma City has refreshed its roster heading into 2026-27, and with another run at San Antonio looming, this has the feel of a rivalry that could take on a sharper edge quickly. [Read more 🡒]
Spurs Camp Suddenly Has A Real DeAaron Fox Problem
The Spurs are heading into training camp with a legitimate decision to make at point guard, and it is not the kind that can be waved away as routine preseason sorting. DeAaron Fox and Dylan Harper sit at the center of it, with the veterans experience and the younger guards upside giving San Antonio two very different paths as it tries to settle the backcourt and define the tone for the season.
What makes the situation more interesting is that the answer is not locked in just because Fox arrived with the higher profile. Mitch Johnson is expected to sort the rotation based on what he sees on the floor, and the Spurs could still revisit three-guard looks with Stephon Castle if the matchup demands it. Those combinations have not gone especially well before, which is why this camp battle feels less like a formality and more like an early test of how flexible San Antonio really wants to be. [Read more 🡒]
Harrison Barnes Deal May Signal A Bigger Spurs Deadline Plan
San Antonios signing of Harrison Barnes to an $8 million contract looks less like a simple veteran addition and more like a roster move with the trade deadline in mind. The deal gives the Spurs added salary-cap flexibility, and when paired with other expiring contracts and draft capital, it gives them another tool if they decide the roster needs a midseason upgrade.
Barnes cannot be traded until December 15, so this is not an immediate relocation play, but it does give the Spurs another movable piece once the calendar opens up. If the season pushes them toward a different path, his contract could end up being part of a larger package, and that is what makes this signing worth watching beyond the surface-level fit. [Read more 🡒]