Three big questions the Spurs must answer as their tanking era ends

The San Antonio Spurs have the NBA's most promising young player in Victor Wembanyama, but for the first two years of his career, they've been picking at the top of the draft lottery. They want that to end in 2025-26.

At the 2025 trade deadline, the Spurs traded for All-Star guard De'Aaron Fox. Stephon Castle gave the Spurs their second straight Rookie of the Year, then the team drafted Rutgers point guard Dylan Harper at No. 2 and Arizona forward Carter Bryant at No. 14 in June. They also added veteran big men Luke Kornet and Kelly Olynyk.

Now, the team has a star to pair with Wembanyama, young talent all over the roster and a new focus on winning. Here are three big questions the Spurs have to answer as the Wemby Era finally gets serious about winning.

1. How do their guards fit together?

Fox only played 17 games for the Spurs and only five with Wembanyama, but he should be a good complement to the young big man because of how much he shoots in the mid-range, with 41% of his shots coming between three and 16 feet of the hoop. Despite being 7-foot-4 (he grew half an inch since last season), Wembanyama took 47% of his shots from beyond the three-point arc.

The problem is that Fox is only a 33% three-point shooter for his career, a weakness shared by the Spurs' young point guards. Castle shot 28.5% from deep last season. Harper shot 33.3% at Rutgers from the closer college line. It may be hard to play these non-shooters together because of the lack of spacing.

The upside is that all three players are great at getting to the basket, and that at 6-foot-6, both Harper and Castle have the size and defensive chops to play on the wings. Wembanyama's range should open up the paint, but San Antonio needs at least one of its point guards to makes his threes this year.

2. Can Wembanyama take the next step?

Wembanyama led the NBA in blocks in both of his first two seasons, even after missing 36 games as a sophomore. He blocked 3.8 shots per game and collected 9.2 defensive boards, doing a great job of ending possessions for his defense.

He didn't have quite the same impact on offense. While he averaged 24.3 points, he had barely more assists (3.7) per gamer than turnovers (3.2). Wemby started slow and wasn't all that efficient on offense.

The encouraging sign for the Spurs is that Wembanyama's shot improved as the season went on, with the big man averaging 28.5 points in December. If he can get more comfortable in the post and become a better passer alongside better teammates, then Wembanyama will go from All-Star to MVP candidate.

3. Which role players can establish themselves as long-term pieces?

Devin Vassell averaged 16.3 points last season as a three-and-D wing whose threes and defense could use some improvement. Jeremy Sochan is a world-class athlete who hasn't found a position or a reliable jumper yet. Keldon Johnson willingly moved to bench last season to provide energy and scoring as the Spurs sixth man, but his outside shot was inconsistent.

It's a crucial year for each player to establish themselves as rotation players who can be part of the next contending team with Wembanyama. For Sochan in particular, going into his fourth season, the Spurs need to find out what they have in these players and which of them can overcome their weaknesses to become reliable players in important games.