It’s getting close to the 2025 season and a lot of spurs players have a chance to take a leap in production, along with a few veteran players being added to the roster. Will the Spurs improve or stay one of the bottom teams in the West?
i bet they will be worse than the year before… 3 Ls more…
Still a non playoff team of course but I expect a 10-13 seed finish
41 wins is realistic if Wemby is healthy.
I could honestly see anywhere from high 20’s (with say, top 6 odds) to low 40’s and sneaking into the bottom of the play-in (though that will be incredibly hard in thw West).
The addition of Paul and Barnes is not just about what these 2 actually bring as players (though a good PG could make a huge difference to Wemby, as we saw with our on/off numbers last year with Tre Jones), but about overall depth and roster construction. Suddenly Tre Jones is a full-time backup, Keldon is a clear bench player, Champagnie is a 9th/10th guy, and guys like Branham and Wesley are true end of the bench guys. Moving these guys to their more natural roles, and not asking them to do too much could suddenly make a huge difference to performance and wins and losses - especially if Vic makes an improvement (and just plays 5 all year).
But I also see a world where by January the team is clearly off play-in pace, and decide that the best outcome is to just soft-tank for those top 5/6 odds. See if you can any positive trade value for Barnes or Paul (otherwise probably buyout Paul so he can go to a contender), gives guys extended injury rest, and pump minutes into guys like Branham, Wesley and Cissoko, to see if they have any future in the league. We have done it before, and could easily jump up 5-ish lottery places if we time it right.
At least every game against PHX
They got some nice additions but it feels like it depends on the progress Wemby made this offseason on the offensive end. He should get plenty of servise but is like to less settling for long range shots and more attacking the basket in Giannis style. If he takes the leap, they should be a play-in team
They’re gonna suck. Wemby is incredible obviously but he still has a couple of years to go before he can be a guy who will lead a team into the playoffs. CP3 will be a great tone-setter and veteran presence but he’s not good enough to lead to a lot of wins at this point in his career. Vassell seems to be injured pretty often so he needs be on the floor more too. Guys like Castle and Sochan are still question marks.
I see them being something like 30-52.
I might be too cynical and negative but maybe 5 games. I just don’t see Wemby’s progression and CP3 making the team that much better
I think 5 games is too low. We have to remember that there were basically 2 different Spurs teams last year:
- The one where Pop was trying to fit a square peg in a round hole, (i.e. Wemby at the 4 and Sochan as the PG)
- Pop realizes that what looks, quacks, and sounds like a duck is a duck, (Wemby at the 5 with an actual point guard)
The first team was horrendous and the 2nd team was bad, but was also winning at a 28-win pace, (6 wins better than their overall record). January to April isn’t a small sample either.
I think improving 5 wins from that 28-win pace makes sense, which would mean an overall total of an 11 win improvement.
As currently constructed, not many. Maybe 2-3 games strictly based on Wemby developing more.
It’s usually a few seasons into their career where even the all-timers start making their teams be serious.
And the Spurs roster is just awful. This isn’t like when they tanked for Duncan.
They got the #1 pick and Wemby because they just fucking suck.
I don’t see how adding CP3 helps anything on the court. He might help Wemby with prep, but can or should he play serious minutes for a serious team at this point in his career? No.
I hope they somehow get the first pick regardless of record for the ultimate defensive frontline of Wemby Sochan and Flagg lmao
The fact that okc and the spurs have realistic chances of getting Flagg is disgusting
How OKC, which Picks do they have?
1st Round Miami (Protected 1-14) — 1st Round Houston or Clippers (Houston is protected 1-10) — 1st Round Utah (Protected 1-10) — 1st Round Philadelphia (Protected 1-6) — 2nd Round Atlanta (Protected 31-40) — They also obviously own their own 1st and 2nd round picks.
Considering everything but the Clippers is protected, I don’t see how they could get Flagg without trading for him.
With the way Harden is talking and depending on how many games Kawhi misses, the Clippers might be 11th or 12th in the West
For starters, I don’t think their record last season will be indicative of how good or bad they’ll be this season. They played at a 14-win pace in the first half of the year and a 30-win pace the second half after lineup adjustments.
They added CP3, Barnes, and Castle so their spacing, decision making, and defense got better. I think 36 wins, give or take a few wins should be the expectation.
Vegas models put them at o/u 35.5 wins so they are projected to win about 13 more than last year. And I trust their models a lot more than hot take redditors
Bottom. West is too competitive, the roster is lacking talented depth, and the big acquisition in CP3, though will produce amazing highlights with his assists to Wemby and will be a great mentor, is a liability in every other phase of the game.
Give it another draft or two, see how the young picks develop, then start going after stars on the market.
I can see the Trail Blazers and Jazz being worse than the Spurs next season for sure
Play ins. A Chris Paul led offense is still the best in the NBA
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