How the San Antonio Spurs Can Build a Contender Around Victor Wembanyama | Spurs Offseason Preview

How the San Antonio Spurs Can Build a Contender Around Victor Wembanyama | Spurs Offseason Preview

one last report this week before we wrap the show here Wes uh the San Antonio Spurs let’s move to the NBA draft Jonathan gavon of ESPN went on Kevin o Conor’s NBA draft podcast for the ringer earlier this week and was the first person to kind of broch the idea that the Spurs who of course have the fourth and eighth picks could be a a pursu they could pursue a trade to move up to number one you couple that with this a bunch of noise around I think we’ve even talked about it with Zack Cohen who’s been doing draft stuff with us that the Hawks who have the first pick seem to really like Donovan kingan maybe they just take him first overall but if they felt good about getting him at four this type of a trade would make a lot of sense so okay could it both sides a little bit of incentive maybe there’s a deal there then you add in that the Spurs this week not even reportedly the dude was photographed in San Antonio Zachary uh ree from France the wing who’s popping and and and soaring up everybody’s boards lately is in San Antonio for a workout and you kind of put all that together and it’s like all right the Spurs don’t think they can get ree at four they’re thinking of a pick to of a trade to move up to the first pick to take him and the Hawks feel like they can stick it for and still get their guy and Donovan King and what do you make of how real this is if it makes sense is this where draft Knight’s headed um I don’t know how real it is but it makes a whole lot of sense doesn’t it where yeah I don’t think that there’s a Hu there there’s no Zion wanyama prize in this draft and everybody sort of agrees at the top of the draft we could try to anoint somebody the best player in this draft but there’s not one there’s not some Elite Prospect they’re all kind of the top three or four are pretty close together so if there might be lot of movement right in the in the top of the draft where where teams kind of move to where they think they need to be in order to get the guy that fits their need and for San Antonio guy like R makes a lot of sense for them a two-way Wing can hit open threes um has some on the ball juice flash ability to do that most importantly everybody’s lotting his defense off ball defender on ball defense can use a little Improvement as he gets a little bit stronger but people really like this guy and there’s the obvious French connection between him and wanyama so I don’t know if San Antonio has just decided that Texas is the the France of America now there’s a Paris Texas isn’t there there is there’s a movie about it so there we go um it’s not in San it’s not San Antonio necessarily but they could be like the wine country or something they got GRE papovich there as a as a mascot so I guess that’s the strategy also is let’s just put all the French Dudes on one team and hey that’s it it worked with wanyama and and Ray if he is the best player in this draft it’s not a bad strategy I guess um you’re building around R there’s something to be said about that there’s a they’re in a position that I think is both Atlanta and San Antonio frankly are in a spot where they can afford to be a little bit more purposeful with what they’re doing because they already have a player they Envision as their number one guy now maybe Trey gets traded and that that we we aren’t saying that in two three weeks but for now Trey young is the best player on the Hawks Victor wanyama is the best player on the Spurs so they can say we like Donovan kingan what do we do to get him whereas if you’re Washington at 2 for instance you’re just going to let the draft unfold and try to take the player you feel the best about period it doesn’t really matter who you like or what fits or anything else so right makes sense yeah it makes sense that these teams would be sort of thinking about it this way I went back and looked at other trades one of the which included Atlanta west of move UPS near the very top of the draft or or moves it at all obviously the one we all think of Philly Boston 2017 guy who’s about to win a championship here um the Sixers moved from 3 to one in the 2017 draft to draft to take Marquel Foltz all they gave up and I forgot this all they gave up was I believe it ended up being a 2019 first from the Lakers or the Kings one of the two I don’t remember which one ended up conveying that’s it three and that pick was all it took to get to number one and then uh Atlanta who I mentioned a minute ago as the secondary move to the involvement that they had with the Anthony Davis deal ended up going uh from 8 to four to take DeAndre Hunter what they gave up was all that year picks but it was 817 and 35 so it feels like four and eight that could just be the trade four and eight for one that’s it and they just get the first overall pick I mean recent history says you don’t have to actually give up a whole heck of a lot it’s not like the NFL where you’re stacking all this other stuff to get two spots or whatever and that almost feels like too much to give up right if I’m Atlanta that’s a no-brainer for me because you’re not you know four to one is usually a leap in sort of prospect right and in this draft I it feels like the top four or five are pretty much flat you’re just sort of moving around trying to figure out where you need to be to take the guy who fits your thing so I would if that’s if if I’m Atlanta I’m definitely doing it the the clinging part to me is interesting if that’s the guy they’re targeting four is a little risky to move down because you still got Houston there I had the same thought yeah and and so maybe they’d be willing to not get klling in maybe they say you know what if it’s Stefan castle that we end up with or alexar that we end up with or whatever then we’re willing to live with that and that’s okay because we’re just not that interested in any of these guys maybe it’s more of it’s not Boston in 2017 right where they knew Lonzo was going to so it didn’t really like they didn’t have to worry you’re you’re kind of putting your fate in the hands of Washington and Houston in that case it’s risky they unless they know who Houston wants and they feel good about Clingan being there of course but um I don’t think any I think that would be really hard to figure out right now so um yeah maybe it’s just a matter of we don’t love who’s at number one and we’d love to be able to trade back and pick up another pick here and just you know two is better than one in this draft we had you know two shots to find a Difference Maker as opposed to one even though we have the number one pick so maybe it might be just as simple as that yeah Atlanta is fascinating to me because people keep pointing out this idea that hey don’t forget they won’t tear it down they won’t blow this thing up because they owe unprotected picks coincidentally to San Antonio in these upcoming drafts from the from the Deonte Murray deal I I think we got to get out of that mindset I think we’re going to increasingly see similar to what we’ve already seen Brooklyn kind of do where you’re the way you’re going to get out of pick hell is get getting other teams picks and you know just cycling through okay we we don’t have our picks from the dejonte Murray deal part one but what if we trade Murray and we get a couple Lakers picks or whatever team he goes to now those picks can kind of be our developmental track back to some sort of young depth and we’ll just kind of keep it going from there like Brooklyn gets rid of Harden and gets a little bit of okay now they have a couple Philadelphia picks then they lose Durant they have Phoenix picks they don’t have their own picks but they have some sort of first round Capital either to take players or to make their next move so I’m not convinced that the Hawks won’t get a little bit worse and maybe taking four and eight this year and using next year as somewhat of a reset would be part of the way to do that but the bigger question I had I will say if they do take kingan would be uh would suggest that maybe it’s not a complete tear down that they could still trade one of the point guards but keep the other one and base everything that they’re doing around sort of the cling in other point guard pick and roll kingan to me isn’t a guy that you draft and you’re like that’s the star of our future I don’t think anybody sees kingan with that kind of ceiling but um from the beginning I said the Hawks should keep Trey and treat what whether it’s somebody they take at one or now in this version of events where maybe they get a couple bites at that Apple guys who fit with Trey a little bit and you kind of reset I mean I compared it to like what Dallas did missing the playoffs last year it’s not a one to one but right have some patience here and stop forcing it and say okay our core is now Trey kinging and X you know and and great see what that can get you rather than the Marie trade thing which isn’t working but I I think there’s a middle ground they can take where they get rid of one of the guards but they also take a young player and they kind of uh have a little bit more flexibility going forward so I I think there’s an opportunity they they’re not as strapped as I think people are saying um but they got to they got to nail all the steps and between it’s not a given that they’re going to do that uh Spurs wise is there anybody besides wanyama that you’re sure will be in San Antonio for the Long Haul as you look at that roster is there anything else you’re tying down and and making sure is is part of your core for the future I’m a big Devon Vel guy I I would tie him down I like him a lot I like his fit next to wanyama he’s aggressive enough but also understands that it’s w Min yama’s team I thought we they’re rating on the court together was was quite good last year has all the makings of the guy that you want good Defender long could hit threes just I don’t know that he’s NE necessarily a star next to wanyama but I think he could be a really important player next to wanyama I Vel is one of the more interesting guys in the league I think next year just because you know profile wise he does feel like a player who should be all the things that you said but his shot selection is very uh Hit or Miss he likes the pullup he likes the pull-up jumper of every of every kind he doesn’t really get to the basket I think if his passing can develop he can have a little bit more value even Beyond maybe what we thought he could be in the league defensively he’s long but not not hyper athletic and we I think we can get tricked by guys like that sometimes you know so uh it he’s already been paid they clearly like him I would agree he’s probably close to not Untouchable but they’re planning on having him on the the team at least next season I like soan I think not having him be a point guard he can be pretty effective I actually think his catch and shoot three numbers were pretty solid once they stopped trying to make him the primary initiator on the team so it’s probably those three guys I’m not sure if there’s anything else beyond that which just brings me to the question I mean okay Reay great even if they keep four and eight whatever generally speaking what kinds of pieces are you looking for next to Victor wanyama after watching him for a year and getting a little bit of a sense of what he might be in the NBA although look all bets are still off I’m not going to put a cap or any sort of constraints on that guy but we at least know how he wants to play a little bit what are you looking for what do you want to add whether it’s in this draft or in free agency down the line well the number one thing you want is a point guard who can get him the ball so that he doesn’t have to work as hard uh so that’s the number one thing I’m looking for I’m also not just saying well we got Wy so we don’t need defense anywhere else I would lean all the way into that stuff I would be I would want Defenders all over the court like a guy like a guy that makes sense to me for them is Devon Carter uh maybe the best on ball defender in this draft having him at the point of attack and when benyam on that back line would be terrifying I think there’s good defenses and then I think there’s defenses that win games Minnesota’s defense is one that win games can you construct a game-winning defense you already got the most important part in wanyama Defensive Player of the Year candidate maybe even the favorite going in next year I would be tilting everything I’ve got into that and then obviously just shooting around him I also would go find another Center I know that we all agree that we minyama at Center is their best lineup but I don’t want that to be my only option you want to keep him healthy I think you’re going to need to find pockets of games and pockets of the Season where he’s playing Power Forward not banging bodies with n joic and jol and beid when those guys are in town go find a real big bodied Center go spend money on yonas valent chunis you know like just a big guy who can kind of just take those bruises so that web andama at this stage of his career doesn’t have to I think that’s really important too side note it’s been fascinating to me just with this report and some of the other players that they’ve been connected to that their name has popped up so much in the rumor mill lately this this offseason compared to past ones they don’t tend to be a team where you hear real stuff ever they don’t make a lot of Trades so I guess I’ll just raise a little bit of skepticism that they’re not just being used uh because they have for andate because there’s a little like you already heard that whole like they don’t want to be bad that’s been kind of out there I I really doubt that they’re going around saying that you know so right I’m going to hold out a little bit of fully believing what I hear about the Spurs given their track record and the fact that they’re out there so much now feel like it’s just agents and rival Executives kind of being like well hey you know Vick’s Vick’s really good already they probably shouldn’t be waiting too long with him so keep an eye out and you know they what are they up to with 4 and eight you got to you know poke around there random Insider X Y or Z so but uh with Vic Point guard’s obvious I really do think they should be prioritizing a a traditional playmaker in whatever form they can get it so I kind of honestly I know like we all hated it it didn’t work but the idea with soan did make some sense to me somebody who is not a Score first player who might have been able to develop into a table setter I still think sohan’s playmaking can be a positive attribute for them even if he’s not handling the ball at all times but whether that’s Darius Garland or dejonte Murray whatever the trade they could make or some guy we haven’t thought of or heard of yet who becomes that for them in time I think Vic in the post Vic attacking Closeouts in transition all those a person who can set him up is going to be important you don’t want to have the ball in his hands I think injuries and everything else would just worry me too much so get me a guy who can really do that I also feel I I like what you said about size like I think what we saw with and defense what we saw with Minnesota and some other teams this year is like that it’s still wins you know it’s still as important and the Zach Collins I just think he’s maybe not a good enough player to be the best partner for for wanyama going forward or even right now but I don’t think the idea is bad to why not get another 69 610 guy just because you have a freak athlete big body guy at Center okay well towns can play next to go bear and you can put a 610 jadeen McDaniels next to that and you know why not if they all fit and they’re all modern versatile players the more the marrier so I really like the idea of just okay we have a generation defensive prospect yes he can shoot and do all this other stuff but why don’t we make that our identity especially CU that’s the side of the ball that’s clearly coming along faster if we want to win right now it’s probably going to be on that end you want to make wean yama’s job easier not harder he’s your star player make it as easy on him to be as Star as possible not harder just because you have a big guy with size who’s a freak athlete all these things doesn’t mean you get rest on your laurels and be like well we got the one thing and now we just have to like improve these other things no make the job easier for him and I’m with you that you I think primarily whatever guard they bring in needs to be a table setter who can get guys involved hopefully be a good Defender because again it’s not enough to just say well we’ve got wemi on the backline he’ll clean everything up no you want like strong physical Defenders who can push guys into wanyama when they’re coming off a screen and kind of direct traffic a little bit so that wanyama could be even more effective um I also think that they need a perimeter score which is why I think I like Vel because it least showed the that willingness to be that guy that secondary perimeter scorer sort of the Jamal Murray to webban yamz yic you you need somebody that when a play breaks down can just take a dude off the dribble and I know web minyama shows some of that stuff and he’s a million feet tall and he could just shoot over anybody so it doesn’t really matter where he shoots from but you do at the end of the day in the NBA you need another guy who could take guys off the dribble and make things happen so I would be looking for that element somewhere in my rotation even if it’s not necessarily my like Bonafide number two I think they need an element of that somewhere in the rot yeah they’re an interesting team I I think they can be I think they can be pretty good next year if they nail nail some things this summer you know they they weren’t far off I mean we all laughed at how Denver’s seating and playoff Destiny might have been affected by this team stealing a game from them the last week of the season and and that type of frisky team regardless of if they have a generational player those teams that compete against the best even in you know February March April that tends to mean something so I think they’re kind of closer than people think especially given all the resources they have this summer so we’ll see what they do maybe they just take a player at 4 and eight that wouldn’t be a bad thing considering they also have cap space but they’re going to be in the mix for a lot if they want to be uh as will the Hawks of course with number one

What do the San Antonio Spurs need to do to build a contender around Victor Wembanyama, and should they trade up to draft fellow Frenchman Zaccharie Risacher?

Brendon Kleen and Wes Goldberg break down the Spurs’ offseason, best fits around Wembanyama and more.

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