Did Chris Paul Threaten Young Spurs With Trade?

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Jonah Kubicek | Last updated Jan 7, 2025 3:00 PM ET

It's no secret that the San Antonio Spurs revolve around Victor Wembanyama. As soon as he is ready to win, the front office should cash in their assets and add complementary talent around their generational player.

After Wembanyama carried the Spurs for three straight games but the team lost two winnable games to the Denver Nuggets and Chicago Bulls, the day of reckoning might come sooner rather than later.

Fans and executives alike have convinced themselves that Wembanyama is surrounded by an "untouchable" young core of Devin Vassell, Jeremy Sochan, and Stephon Castle, but the reality is if they can't win with Wemby, they will get thrown to the wolves. Fortunately, they still have time to prove themselves.

Chris Paul, one of the smartest players in the NBA, is well aware of the consequences of not playing up to standard and issued a stern eight-word warning on Monday night: "Everybody not guaranteed to be here next year."

“There's no time like the present," he said on Monday. "Everybody not guaranteed to be here next year. You know, I ain't never been one of those to learn, you know, I win and learn at the same time. That's the best way to do it."

Paul is a free agent in the summer and likely won't re-sign, but their one-year deal has been mutually beneficial this year. Paul was partly talking about himself, but he meant it as a warning to his teammates as well. If Wembanyama doesn't think you can help him win a title, stop wasting his time.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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