Finding the Wemby fit, Part II: Choose your path at No. 4

As the draft approaches, we attempt to view prospects through the Spurs' lens based on recent historical trends and a little, ahem, corporate knowledge.

The projected outlook of San Antonio’s offseason is beginning to map out like a choose-your-own-adventure book, with the upcoming NBA Draft serving as the starting point for the story’s protagonist. For every action there will be a reaction, for each decision there will be a consequence, and for every risk, well, there may or may not be a reward.

Every summer looks like this to a degree, but the randomness and uncertainty that clouds this particular offseason cycle means adaptiveness will be critical for the Spurs in addressing their needs. The good news for San Antonio is it’s set up with about as much asset ammo and cap flexibility as a team could ask for without begging, and given it’s in the market for nearly every player archetype under the sun, there should be plenty of unobstructed pathways through this stage of the rebuild process.

But the draft will be the event that dictates what the Spurs do with the rest of their summer. Its results will shed light on which players from the current roster are most likely to be retained, dealt or flat-out waived, as well as which targets may materialize in free agency and on the trade market. This isn’t a new story or approach, but the stakes this time around are much higher than they have been in recent years now that the centerpiece is in place.

The common theme of this newsletter series is in the headline, and it’s simple to understand any combination of players San Antonio attains this summer must pass the Victor Wembanyama fit test. So, along with the help of some intel, I’ve narrowed things down to two prospects who should theoretically do the trick with the fourth overall pick.