Point guard's return crucial for Spurs' playoff push

San Antonio brought in Chris Paul to be the starting point guard this season, and he's really helped turn the Spurs into a respectable offense. He's averaging 8.2 assists and leading the team with an offensive rating of 128. The problem comes when the 39-year-old Paul sits, roughly 20 minutes per game, when the Spurs have been 11.5 points per 100 possessions worse.

That's where Jones will help. Although he's not a great shooter, only cracking 30 percent on three-pointers for the first time last year, he's an ideal backup point guard. For his career, he averages 4.7 assists against just 1.1 turnovers. Last year, he made over half his shots from the field, and the Spurs have been significantly better with Jones on the floor the last two seasons (+12.6 points per 100 last season).

Perhaps most significant was how much better Victor Wembanyama was with Jones on the floor last season. With Jones on the floor, he had a true shooting percentage of 59.2 percent, compared to 52.2 percent when Jones sat.

The Spurs don't need scoring from their backup point guard as much as they need someone who can get the ball to their superstar without turning it over. That's something the team hasn't been getting from 2022 first-rounders Blake Wesley and Malaki Branham, both of whom haven't showed any passing ability while Jones was out for 12 games with a sprained ankle. Combined, they're dishing out three assists per game with 2.5 turnovers.

With Jones back, the Spurs knocked off the Oklahoma City Thunder Tuesday night, 110-104, to move to 7-8. They did that without Wembanyama or the injured Devin Vassell. With an excess of raw young talent that includes Wemby, rookie Stephon Castle and Jeremy Sochan, the Spurs need a floor-raising guard like Jones to stabilize the second unit more than they need a more volatile guard who might raise their ceiling.

For a team that hasn't made the playoffs in five seasons, reliably average point guard play might be boring, yet also exactly what this young team needs. Paul is going to get hurt and miss games at some point. Right now, a generational talent like Wembanyama just needs teammates like Jones who won't mess things up.