Finding the Wemby fit, Part I: The unlikely results

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

San Antonio will enter the offseason in the NBA’s most enviable position: It’s got plenty of cap flexibility, a wave of draft picks and swaps all the way out to 2030 (including two in the top 10 this summer), a roster whose highest-paid player will be making less than $30 million next season, and of course, Victor Wembanyama on a rookie-scale contract for three more years.

Nearly any path the Spurs want to take, they can take. Because they know, regardless of route, they have the cornerstone that will eventually thrust them into contention no matter the alterations to the blueprint moving forward. Now they just have to identify the right complements to the design, and the next month-plus is going to shed some light on that thought process as the Victor timeline begins to pick up momentum.

First up, the NBA Draft, where San Antonio owns the fourth and eighth picks. And if ever there was a year when it may be more desirable to have those two selections over the first pick by itself, this might be the one. The general feeling is the Spurs are most likely going to stay where they are, as the idea of taking one shot at the top instead of two in the top 10 of this particular draft may not make sense from cost-analysis and risk-reward standpoints given the lack of certainty in the players on the board. And at least in this writer’s opinion, trading up for that one shot would decrease San Antonio’s odds of optimizing its roster long-term.

Additionally, with two strong draft classes coming in 2025 and 2026, it might be smart for the Spurs to holster their assets for now. This does not mean they won’t be on a mission to improve the roster this summer, but it doesn’t seem prudent for them to shoot their wad at this juncture unless the right star is made available. Don’t waste assets to slide up a few spots in a crapshoot when there are still going to be useful prospects on the board once it’s their time on the clock. Keep drafting, peruse the vet market, continue to develop in-house talent, and if a good opportunity comes along, capitalize.

But offseason talk is another topic for another day — one we will get to in the coming weeks. It’s draft season now, and regardless of where San Antonio ends up selecting, it’ll have a handful of players from which to choose who possess skill sets that should theoretically fit around Wembanyama. As weak as this class is in terms of obvious star power, it could crank out a buffet of valuable role guys with potential to contribute in a significant way for years to come. It just depends on the approach they’d like to take.

For Part I, however, we’re going to take a look at the players who either seem like longshots to obtain (even at No. 4) or would be tricky fits within the Wembanyama solar system.

*Note: I did my best to project each prospect’s role in the NBA using BBall-Index’s archetype system. Lemme know if you have any disagreements!