***********2024-2025 San Antonio Spurs Thread********************

50,288 Views | 830 Replies | Last: 7 hrs ago by West Texan
Guitarsoup
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Unless we are getting a guy like Traore, I don't think we go guard when we have Tre, Devin, and Castle. I think that SF/PF and backup center are the bigger needs.

Collin Murray-Boyles, especially if his jumper starts to develop.

Donnie Freeman at Cuse is tall with good touch and defensive intensity/versatility.

Noa Essengue, because we like tall french players.

Asa Newell.

Egor Demin

Hugo Gonzalez.

I think there are going to be a lot of guys with shooting talent available and lots of bigger guys than Knueppel.

But a ton of basketball to be played between now and then.
TheNotoriousP.I.P.
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I see Tre as the odd man out, he already is an awkward fit with Castle in that second unit and doesn't really seem to fit this teams defensive identity, and Blake is nipping at his heels. I wouldn't be surprised if we shipped Tre out mid-season or let him walk in the offseason.
Enzo The Baker
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TheNotoriousP.I.P. said:

I see Tre as the odd man out, he already is an awkward fit with Castle in that second unit and doesn't really seem to fit this teams defensive identity, and Blake is nipping at his heels. I wouldn't be surprised if we shipped Tre out mid-season or let him walk in the offseason.

I agree, at least as the team is constructed now. I think he's a 3rd string point guard on a contender. I'm okay with having him on the bench. But at $10 million plus after this contract, probably not. Even his brother, who is better, struggled to get a contract and settled for a minimum with Phoenix.
Guitarsoup
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Enzo The Baker said:

TheNotoriousP.I.P. said:

I see Tre as the odd man out, he already is an awkward fit with Castle in that second unit and doesn't really seem to fit this teams defensive identity, and Blake is nipping at his heels. I wouldn't be surprised if we shipped Tre out mid-season or let him walk in the offseason.

I agree, at least as the team is constructed now. I think he's a 3rd string point guard on a contender. I'm okay with having him on the bench. But at $10 million plus after this contract, probably not. Even his brother, who is better, struggled to get a contract and settled for a minimum with Phoenix.
I just don't know that I agree. I think the long-term move is that Castle and Vassell start at 1/2 and the offense goes primarily through Wemby (a la Draymond or Jokic) and Vassell/Castle are the secondary initiators.

Then Tre is the primary initiator of the 2nd team.

Tre's 2nd half was .523/.421/.811 for 11/7/5 and had over 4:1 assist to turnover ratio. He was also +3.3 in +/-, which looks a lot better when you consider we had a losing record ov er those 27 games.

He can totally be the bench PG on a contender if he is putting up that type of efficiency running with the 1st team. He also played much better defense than most give him credit for.

The bigger question is will (and how soon) Castle be a starter. Then Will Jeremy be starting quality? I think he's a 2nd team situational wing defender right now.
Guitarsoup
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West Texan
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Guitarsoup said:

Unless we are getting a guy like Traore, I don't think we go guard when we have Tre, Devin, and Castle. I think that SF/PF and backup center are the bigger needs.

Collin Murray-Boyles, especially if his jumper starts to develop.

Donnie Freeman at Cuse is tall with good touch and defensive intensity/versatility.

Noa Essengue, because we like tall french players.

Asa Newell.

Egor Demin

Hugo Gonzalez.

I think there are going to be a lot of guys with shooting talent available and lots of bigger guys than Knueppel.

But a ton of basketball to be played between now and then.


Part of what makes offenses that use a big as the main hub work is having elite shooting around the playmaking big. Draymond obviously had two all time greats in Steph and Klay, Jokic has Murray and MPJ. There's so much time between now and draft day, that outside of Flagg and a couple others, I haven't really watched many of the prospects in this class (which looks to be very deep). I doubt we'd pick two guys in the top 10 that are essentially the same position, but taking a guy that can fill it up from deep would be easy to justify.

You mentioned Traore and I really like his game. I know we all expect Castle to be our PG, but I think if you have a chance to pick him, he'd be really hard to pass up. Lightning quick first step that reminds me of a taller Tony Parker.
Guitarsoup
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Quote:


Part of what makes offenses that use a big as the main hub work is having elite shooting around the playmaking big. Draymond obviously had two all time greats in Steph and Klay, Jokic has Murray and MPJ. There's so much time between now and draft day, that outside of Flagg and a couple others, I haven't really watched many of the prospects in this class (which looks to be very deep). I doubt we'd pick two guys in the top 10 that are essentially the same position, but taking a guy that can fill it up from deep would be easy to justify.

And a lot of those guys are expected to be shooters, but bigger shooters, not SGs. Having a guy that is 6'6-6'10 is WAY more valuable as a shooter (like Klay and MPJ that you mentioned) than a SG. How many 6'5 guys do you want to put around Wemby? Are you really going to draft to have Wemby+Sochan+ three 6'5 guys? We are weakest at PF and SF right now, and there are multiple guys that project to be good at those positions that can shoot.

We need that length WAY more than we need a backup to Vassell. If we just want a SG shooter, we can go sign Lonnie anytime.



Quote:

You mentioned Traore and I really like his game. I know we all expect Castle to be our PG, but I think if you have a chance to pick him, he'd be really hard to pass up. Lightning quick first step that reminds me of a taller Tony Parker.
Castle is flexible enough to be able to play 1-3, imo. I agree that Traore has star or superstar potential and if he's there, you gotta consider it.

I think Castle will be a great connective piece, but not sure he is going to be an All-Star/top 50 player. We gotta hope his ceiling is bigger, stronger Jrue Holiday. But even if he does get to Jrue level, we still need a 2nd All-NBA level guy and I think Traore can be that. I don't think Devin or Castle can be that. Jrue was never All-NBA.

Spurs need that #2 player, and I really hope we get lucky and get it in this draft.


Vegas has Brooklyn, Detroit, Portland, Washington all at 22.5 or worse. Then Charlotte, Utah, Chicago, Toronto at 27.5-30.5. Then Spurs/Hawks at 35.5 for 9th/10th. I think that Toronto could be better than that (if they want to be) with a soft schedule and an intelligently built roster. Chicago's roster is kind of a mess, but are they 9 games worse trading Caruso and DeMar for LaVine, Matas, and Giddey in a bad conference? IDK, but I bet White and Ayo both continue to get better.

All that said, if Hawks end at 6th worse and Spurs are 8th worse, we have a 58% shot at a top 4 pick. If it is 9th and 10th, it is a 34% at a top 4 pick. 8&9 is a 46% shot at top 4.

So lets hope that Trae hates Jalen Johnson and blows that **** up.
West Texan
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There's soooo much time and ball to be played by both the Spurs and all of the draft prospects, that trying to predict what the big board now is damn near impossible. I completely agree that the 3/4 spot is by far our biggest weakness and something we need to upgrade. Every team in the league is looking for 6'6"+ shooters that can switch and defend. Best case scenario is the lottery gods let us get Flagg or possibly Ace Bailey.

But I also believe in drafting best player available over positional fit. So if a SG is bpa, you pick him instead of reaching for a 4. Also with this being a deep draft and owning multiple picks, you also should have lots of potential trade partners as well.
West Texan
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Guitarsoup said:

Vegas has Brooklyn, Detroit, Portland, Washington all at 22.5 or worse. Then Charlotte, Utah, Chicago, Toronto at 27.5-30.5. Then Spurs/Hawks at 35.5 for 9th/10th. I think that Toronto could be better than that (if they want to be) with a soft schedule and an intelligently built roster. Chicago's roster is kind of a mess, but are they 9 games worse trading Caruso and DeMar for LaVine, Matas, and Giddey in a bad conference? IDK, but I bet White and Ayo both continue to get better.

All that said, if Hawks end at 6th worse and Spurs are 8th worse, we have a 58% shot at a top 4 pick. If it is 9th and 10th, it is a 34% at a top 4 pick. 8&9 is a 46% shot at top 4.

So lets hope that Trae hates Jalen Johnson and blows that **** up.


I think Charlotte as long as they're healthy makes a jump and contends for a play in spot. They have holes defensively, but Lamelo, Miller, and Bridges is a solid 3 to win a lot of shoot outs. Chicago will find a way to be just competitive enough that it doesn't benefit them at all. They're just a horribly run franchise. I think Toronto has a better roster and should finish above Atlanta. Scottie Barnes is legit and their pieces around him fit better than what Trae Young has. If Utah was in the East, I'd say they for sure finish above Atlanta. The West is just so deep right now that they're gonna have a hard time winning games.
Ag Natural
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Why are we talking draft at this point. Let's go make the playoffs *****ez!!
Guitarsoup
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Ag Natural said:

Why are we talking draft at this point. Let's go make the playoffs *****ez!!
Rather win the lottery than make it in the play-in. Long term success vs short term success.

Let's get #1 and #2.
Ag Natural
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Guitarsoup said:

Ag Natural said:

Why are we talking draft at this point. Let's go make the playoffs *****ez!!
Rather win the lottery than make it in the play-in. Long term success vs short term success.

Let's get #1 and #2.


Nah, we need to build winning habits right away. We can let Atlanta suck and get us a nice pick next year.
West Texan
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Ag Natural said:

Why are we talking draft at this point. Let's go make the playoffs *****ez!!


I'm talking about Atlanta's pick we own. I think we make a run at the play in.


Also, I love the NBA draft.
West Texan
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No Wemby tonight in our preseason game against the Jazz. I'll be interested to see if we go with the Sochan at center lineup or if we start Mamu and look more traditional.
Guitarsoup
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Ag Natural said:

Guitarsoup said:

Ag Natural said:

Why are we talking draft at this point. Let's go make the playoffs *****ez!!
Rather win the lottery than make it in the play-in. Long term success vs short term success.

Let's get #1 and #2.


Nah, we need to build winning habits right away. We can let Atlanta suck and get us a nice pick next year.
I think they can build winning habits without winning 45+ games.

OKC's arc with SGA.

* 44-28 team with Chris Paul
* 22 wins
* 24 wins
* 40 wins
* 57 wins
* 2025 season.



* Draft Wemby
* 22 wins
* 2025 season

Not a lot of teams have had to rebuild from the complete lack of talent we have had to rebuild from. Devin is the only player from Pre-Wemby still on the team that is starter quality on a championship team right now, and he is probably only a 3rd option at best. Adding a complete playoff rotation around Wemby+Devin isn't easy and doesn't happen overnight.
Guitarsoup
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He's the 15th man.
Guitarsoup
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Little Big Body





West Texan
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Zach Collins 0/6 from 3. Please stop shooting 3s.
Guitarsoup
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Castle highlights against Utah. Started it at 20s.

4-7, 1-2, 2-2 shooting. 11p, 3a, 2r, 1s, 2to and clearly had some deflections.



This kid is gonna be so good. Drawing fouls, cutting at the right time, eurostep, able to draw a double team then hit the open guy for a three (also Mamu's shooting!)

When he deflected the shot for Wesley's coast to coast, would have loved to see Castle cut to the corner or set a screen for Wesley, but it obviously worked out. Couple reckless drives in there, but I love the aggression.

His crossover dunk was SICK.

Also of note, I see Barnes out there and think "Willie Anderson aged about how I expected. "
LawHall88
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LawHall88
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Guitarsoup
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Imagine if just one of them could develop a great 3pt shot.

Their transition game on the second team could be legendary.
TheNotoriousP.I.P.
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I've loved watching Blake this preseason. He's a beast guarding on ball, basically TP/Fox level fast, an outstanding passer, and has by far the best first step on the team.
Guitarsoup
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TheNotoriousP.I.P. said:

I've loved watching Blake this preseason. He's a beast guarding on ball, basically TP/Fox level fast, an outstanding passer, and has by far the best first step on the team.
Yeah, for sure. And Keldon looks a LOT quicker after losing that bulk.

A second team with Bassey, Sochan, Keldon, Castle, and Wesley won't have any spacing or real offense, but watching them all sprint up and down the court for a few minutes could be really fun.
jteagle
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I know it's pre-season and small sample size but this is encouraging.
West Texan
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Unsurprising, but leaves some hope that we find a way to keep Minix around.
Enzo The Baker
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West Texan said:



Unsurprising, but leaves some hope that we find a way to keep Minix around.

Eff it. Cut Branham and find a spot for Minix.
LawHall88
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LawHall88
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Guess we ain't getting that pick...
LawHall88
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Wait, what?
LawHall88
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Oh, never mind.
Guitarsoup
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Spurs quickly realized it was the wrong McDaniels.
West Texan
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Guitarsoup said:

Spurs quickly realized it was the wrong McDaniels.


Yeah I got excited for a second.
FTAG 2000
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Guitarsoup said:

Spurs quickly realized it was the wrong McDaniels.


Spurs now with 18 second round picks the next six years.
Guitarsoup
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FTAG 2000 said:

Guitarsoup said:

Spurs quickly realized it was the wrong McDaniels.


Spurs now with 18 second round picks the next six years.
We did have to give up the rights to Chicago's 2nd rounder in 2025...

If it falls between 56-60. As long as Chicago doesn't have one of the top 5 records in the NBA, we keep the pick.

I'm feeling lucky.
 
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