Spurs Seem Nearly Done with Rebuild as Season Nears

As it stands now, the San Antonio Spurs seem primed to win plenty of games in a stout Western Conference — which could signal the essential end of its rebuild.

In 2021, the team was somewhat directionless, owning a host of win-now players that simply weren’t winning at a great rate. The team finished the season as the West’s No. 10 seed, and effectively made the choice to rebuild their roster from the ground up. 

Their first selection of the new era would be on forward Jeremy Sochan at No. 9 in the 2022 NBA Draft. With a variety of different on-ball skills and versatile defense, he was a solid building block, but not necessarily a win column needle-mover for the team.

And it’s lucky that he wasn’t, because the team’s 22 games nabbed them the grand prize of all rebuilds: the No. 1 pick, which would be Victor Wembanyama.

At 7-foot-4, Wembanyama was regarded by many draft experts as the greatest basketball prospect of all time, owning an overpowering defensive skillset, with effective wing skills packed inside his all-world frame. So far, those opinions have somewhat held true, as he’s already neared superstardom in just two seasons.

Wemby genetically altered the Spurs’ rebuild, taking them from a fine up-and-coming team to a forgone conclusion as a contender down the line. Still, there was work to be done at the NBA Draft to make that a reality.

After Wembanyama easily brought home Rookie of the Year, the Spurs then decided that was a fine strategy, and chose the 2024 draft’s award-winner in wing Stephon Castle. The former UConn champ showed tons of on-ball improvement as a rookie to go with his stifling defense.

The cherry on top would come from the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery, where San Antonio would jump to No. 2, all but inking guard Dylan Harper to a deal then and there.

In drafting Harper, the Spurs have grabbed yet another star-level prospect, one with a game nearly made to pair with Victor Wembanyama. 

In their young core alone, the Spurs could have a future contender. But they’ve also acquired plenty of veterans ready to help the team win as early as next season, the best of which is All-Star De’Aaron Fox.

After grabbing Fox — and inking him to a new max deal this offseason — it seems unlikely that the Spurs will find themselves atop the NBA Draft again in the Wemby era. At least, not without lottery luck.