This content is taken from an article by Cal Durrett for Air Alamo, translated into Italian by Marco Barone for Around the Game.
With the arrival of the month of December and the holiday season, everyone has a wish list, why not the San Antonio Spurs? The Silver and Black have mostly lived up to expectations, even as they have struggled with injuries and the growing pains that all young teams face. Some of these problems are solvable, but others may require a little holiday magic and should go on your wish list. Let's take a look and see if they are realistic or just vain hopes. Spurs should want:
3) that physical integrity is no longer a problem
For such a young team, the Spurs have had to deal with a lot of injuries. Devin Vassell missed 15 games, Jeremy Sochan 13 games and Tre Jones 18 games. Ironically, Chris Paul has yet to miss a game for the Spurs (knock on wood). However, Victor Wembanyama has already missed five after missing only about ten during his rookie season. With so many early injuries, hopefully everything goes smoothly from here on out and the Spurs can make up ground if they can put together a long run with the full roster.
2) that shooting percentages improve
San Antonio's main problem so far has been shooting, with several rotation players who are anything but skilled from outside. Furthermore, most of the good shooters are already in the starting lineup. Now that Devin Vassell and Jeremy Sochan are back in the starting group, the bench should be a little more balanced, with Julian Champagnie's shooting potentially coming in handy. However, Jones, Stephon Castle, Keldon Johnson and Charles Bassey do not provide great spacing. The two most likely ways to solve the problem are to further modify the starting lineup, perhaps moving Harrison Barnes to the bench and reinstating Castle in the starting five. Or, make a trade to bring in more shooters. In any case, something must be done.
1) that the next draft picks are good
The Spurs may have up to four picks in the 2025 NBA Draft, but that depends on the Charlotte Hornets, Chicago Bulls and Atlanta Hawks. The choice of the last mentioned is not protected, but their results were better than expected. If the season ended today, the Spurs would have the 12th pick via the Hawks. However, with the ranking so compact, this pick can improve significantly. Meanwhile, Chicago is expected to have the 11th pick, which would go to the Spurs. However, it will be a close game, with the Bulls likely moving Nikola Vucevic and Zach LaVine. Not to mention the possibility that the choice will move higher during the actual draft lottery. Finally, the Hornets have the fourth-worst record in the NBA, meaning they are unlikely to make the Playoffs and San Antonio is unlikely to get their first-round pick this season. Luckily for the Spurs, that pick will convert into two likely second-round picks, one in 2026 and the other in 2027. With any luck, the Hawks' pick will improve and the Bulls will be quite competitive for a while longer, before plodding down the rankings, giving the Spurs a chance to get three picks in the 2025 NBA Draft.
