How Victor Wembanyama’s Injury Affects Spurs’ Rookie

The former No. 1 pick has the thrombosis — a form of blood clot — in his right shoulder. Blood clots are not to be taken lightly with professional athletes, and have even ended the career of a few players, though the Spurs believe this to be an isolated incident, per Charania.

Regardless, the next time Wembanyama takes the court will likely be his highly-anticipated third season. And his missing the rest of this year is sure to send a ripple effect through the new-look Spurs’ roster.

One of those ripples is sure to cross through the path of guard Stephon Castle, the No. 4 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. 

At 6-foot-6, Castle followed up Wembanyama in 2024 as another key piece to the Spurs’ rebuild. At UConn, he played as a connective wing stopper, but has potential on-ball guard skills at the NBA level. He’s been stellar so far in his rookie season, a could very well be cruising towards some hardware averaging just under 13 points, 3.5 assists and 2.9 rebounds per game.

Now, Castle and the Spurs are without their centrifugal star for the foreseeable future. So what does that mean for his development?

The time lost between the pairing certainly isn’t welcomed. Wembanyama and Castle will be paired up for the next decade, and the earlier they build chemistry and continuity the sooner they’ll contend.

But there is a silver lining for Castle, too. Wembanyama’s exit from the season takes with it 24.3 points and 18.6 shots per game, leading for even more opportunity for the former Husky to hone his offense. For now, both Castle and De’Aaron Fox will learn how to thrive alongside one another as on-ball guards in the backcourt.

The Spurs will see their first Wembanyama-less game down the home stretch tonight versus the Suns at 8:30 p.m. CT.