Victor Wembanyama caught the Spurs‘ attention five years ago, when CEO R.C. Buford saw him play at 15 years old, Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic writes. The Spurs were able to target a strategy at that point that culminated in the French big man ending up in San Antonio.
“It was the way we structured our rebuild,” Buford said. “It was a step-by-step process. We traded DeMar [DeRozan], we traded Derrick White, we traded Dejounte [Murray], we traded Jakob [Poeltl]. So, I mean, it was just a staged target over a period of several years.”
Wembanyama is well on his way to superstardom, and the story came full circle when the Spurs played in the center’s old stomping grounds in Paris last week.
“The lottery luck, the hoop gods were very good to us,” Buford said. “But the vision of a prospect like that was clearly impactful in the strategy of our rebuild.”
We have more from the Southwest Division:
- The Mavericks were aggressive at the trade deadline last season, adding Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington to a team that ultimately made a run to the NBA Finals. This season, it’s harder to find deals that make sense for Dallas without sacrificing at a position of need. Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News takes a player-by-player look at the Mavericks’ situation, writing that while stars like Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving are obviously untouchable, players like Quentin Grimes and Jaden Hardy could theoretically be moved for a significant upgrade. Still, depth options like Grimes and Hardy have shown flashes that might make them more valuable to Dallas than elsewhere.
- Amen Thompson is continuing to develop into one of the league’s elite defenders in just his second season in the league. Now a full-time starter, Thompson is averaging 13.8 points, 8.0 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 1.2 blocks per game. Kelly Iko of The Athletic spoke with Thompson in a recent interview, discussing his fit with the Rockets and changes to his game from last season to this one. “I can be positionless, yeah. I feel like I’m a point guard, but I can be any position you want me to be on the court,” Thompson said. “I feel like that’s such a good thing to have, you know? With Fred [VanVleet] and Jalen [Green] out there, I can be off the ball and thrive.“
- Ja Morant missed the Grizzlies‘ one-point win over Houston on Thursday due a shoulder injury. Chris Herrington of the Daily Memphian opines in a subscriber-only story that there should be some worry about the star point guard, who has missed eight of the last 16 games.
Spurs really did a great job tearing it down. They fleeced Atlanta and Toronto for Murray and Poeltl
Poeltl was not a fleece – he’s an excellent center, and the odds were against the spurs getting the protected draft pick that turned into dillingham.
3 unprotected firsts for Murray was a fleece, yet somehow the hawks were able to get 2 firsts and Dyson for him somehow! That was incredibly dumb by the pels after seeing him discouraged on a team in which he isn’t the #1 options
Is the SAS FO actually trying to take credit for getting Wemby? LOL. I guess with 2k nation as their audience, why not?
Of course, in the real world, intentionally losing, and hoping the ping pong balls bounce right, isn’t a skill. How about taking a shot (even a feeble one) at putting a team around him? I wonder how poor the team would be without their special “magic” with the ping pong balls.
Sorry DXC but it was absolutely an organized plan to be in the bottom 3 when Wemby came up. Yes the ping balls came down to luck but getting into that position was brilliant and the only player they gave up that hurts today is Derrick White.
Nobody is disputing that SAS engaged in a process of intentional losing that was planned well in advance. The dispute is over whether such behavior is to be admired, such that the FO would boast about it.
Obviously, you think it is. Although, honestly, even among those in your camp, I didn’t imagine (until your post) there was anyone that would ever describe it as brilliant. If the 1 in about 8 of a chance of getting the top pick didn’t work out, was it still brilliant?