Spurs Notes: Biyombo, Kornet, Harper, Waters
Veteran big man Bismack Biyombo, who earned a spot on the Spurs‘ roster for the upcoming season, is valued by the organization for more than just his on-court contributions, writes Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News. McDonald points to a preseason game this week in which Biyombo enjoyed playing the role of teacher as he was on the court with four young players who are headed for the G League.
“It’s a great group of young guys just to be around and help them out,” Biymobo said. “I think when you enjoy doing what you do, then you can’t call it work. And I enjoy working with good people.”
Biyombo was out of the NBA in February when he received a call from the Spurs, who were seeking help at center after trading Zach Collins to Chicago. Biyombo signed a 10-day deal with the expectation of being a backup, but he was promoted to the starting lineup when San Antonio lost Victor Wembanyama for the season with deep vein thrombosis.
He re-signed this summer on an Exhibit 9 contract that only guaranteed him a spot at training camp. The Spurs saw his influence as a leader late last season and decided to keep him on the roster.
“He is very selfless,” Julian Champagnie said. “He goes on the floor with those young guys and teaches them. He’s directing traffic. Stuff like that’s really valuable.”
There’s more from San Antonio:
- “French Vanilla” is the catchy nickname Spurs fans have given to the combination of Wembanyama and free agent addition Luke Kornet, McDonald adds in a separate story. The former Celtics center was brought in primarily to be a backup for Wembanyama, but they’ve been effective in their minutes together. “Having two rim protectors can give you a lot of versatility to make things hard for the teams,” Kornet said. “Then should be a fun time trying to figure it out offensively how to best fit that together.”
- San Antonio has several options at point guard, but Dylan Harper is best positioned to be Wembanyama’s long-term partner, observes Jared Weiss of The Athletic. The No. 2 pick in this year’s draft was sidelined for a while following thumb surgery, but he’s already showing signs of stardom since returning. “There’s a reason that there are expectations and thoughts of him before he got to this gym, and I think it’s our job to continue to cultivate that and support that and challenge him,” coach Mitch Johnson said. “He’s obviously shown a knack for sound decision-making and making plays with the basketball in his hands.”
- Lindy Waters III will undergo a minor laser eye procedure to correct an issue that was found in his preseason physical, according to Jared Weiss of The Athletic (Twitter link). Waters won’t be available for opening night, but he’s not expected to miss much – if any – time beyond that.
Spurs Waive Flagler, Umude, Potter; Biyombo Makes Team
The Spurs have waived guards Adam Flagler and Stanley Umude, along with forward Micah Potter, the team announced today in a press release.
Flagler, 25, was on a two-way deal with the Thunder last season and appeared in 37 games for the champions. He rarely played outside of garbage time, averaging 1.8 points and 0.7 rebounds in 5.5 minutes per contest with a shooting line of .260/.194/.500.
Umude, 26, had a similar role for the Bucks. Appearing in 22 games while on a two-way contract with Milwaukee, the former Arkansas standout scored 15 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in 86 total minutes of action. He converted just 5-of-26 (19.2%) field goal attempts.
Potter, 27, had a more substantial role while on a two-way contract with the Jazz, averaging 4.3 PPG and 4.3 RPG in 18.6 MPG across 38 outings (10 starts).
All three players were on Exhibit 10 deals in San Antonio and will now be eligible to earn bonuses worth $85,300 apiece if they spend at least 60 days with the Austin Spurs, the team’s G League affiliate.
Veteran center Bismack Biyombo was also in camp with the Spurs on a non-guaranteed Exhibit 9 contract, but he wasn’t among today’s cuts and will make the regular season roster, tweets Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. San Antonio now has 15 players on standard contracts and three on two-way deals.
The Spurs actually made a few more roster moves on Saturday, according to Keith Smith of Spotrac, who tweets that the team signed and waived center James Banks, guard Jamaree Bouyea, and guard Kyle Mangas. That trio will likely be ticketed for Austin along with the rest of today’s cuts.
Spurs Exercise 2026/27 Options On Wembanyama, Castle
The Spurs have exercised their 2026/27 rookie scale team options on Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle, as Jared Weiss of The Athletic relays (via Twitter).
French big man Wembanyama will now earn $16,868,246 next season in the final year of his rookie contract. He will be eligible for a rookie scale extension next summer. Former UConn guard Castle, meanwhile, will earn $10,015,920 in ’26/27, which will be his third season.
Given the way the early portions of their careers have played out, both players were locks to have their options picked up.
After earning Rookie of the Year honors and finishing as the runner-up for Defensive Player of the Year during his debut in 2023/24, Wembanyama had a superlative second season in ’24/25, making his first All-Star appearance and averaging 24.3 points, 11.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.1 steals and 3.8 blocks in 33.2 minutes per game.
However, shortly after the All-Star break, the 21-year-old center was diagnosed with a deep vein thrombosis — a blood clot — in his shoulder, cutting his season short. Despite playing just 46 games, Wembanyama still led the NBA in total blocked shots (176) by a wide margin — Brook Lopez was second with 148.
Wembanyama, 21, was the No. 1 overall pick of the 2023 draft. He was medically cleared to resume full basketball activities in July.
Castle was the second straight Spur to win Rookie of the Year following a debut season in which he averaged 14.7 points, 4.1 assists and 3.7 rebounds in 81 games, including 47 starts (26.7 minutes per contest). Castle, who turns 21 in a couple weeks, was the fourth pick of last year’s draft.
We’re tracking all of the rookie scale team option decisions for ’26/27 right here.
Injury Notes: Sochan, George, Demin, Suggs, K. Jones, Ingles
The Spurs will be without forward Jeremy Sochan when they open their regular season in Dallas next Wednesday night, according to the team (Twitter link via Jared Weiss of The Athletic).
Ramping up this fall from a calf injury he sustained during the summer, Sochan had progressed to 5-on-5 scrimmages this week and was trending toward potentially being available for opening night. However, the Spurs say that he sprained his left wrist in practice on Thursday. He’ll enter the regular season considered day-to-day, per the club.
Sochan is one of 15 players who remain eligible to sign rookie scale extensions. If he and the Spurs don’t agree to terms on or before Monday, he’ll be on track to play out his contract year and become eligible for restricted free agency next summer.
We have more injury updates from around the NBA:
- After progressing to 3-on-3 work on Wednesday, Sixers forward Paul George took another step forward on Thursday, fully participating in practice, including 5-on-5 action, tweets Derek Bodner of PHLY Sports. However, head coach Nick Nurse quickly replied “no” when asked if there’s optimism about George suiting up for Friday’s preseason finale or next Wednesday’s regular season opener (Twitter video link). “Yesterday was his first day live,” Nurse said. “… Today was a short amount of 5-on-5, so we have to just keep waiting.”
- No. 8 overall pick Egor Demin will make his preseason debut for the Nets on Friday vs. Toronto, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Demin has been dealing with a plantar fascia tear during training camp and the preseason, but it appears he’ll be ready for the start of the season unless he experiences a setback before then.
- Magic guard Jalen Suggs responded well to the limited contact work he did this week, but there are still hurdles to clear before he’s cleared for game action, head coach Jamahl Mosley said on Thursday. “We’ll have a couple more scrimmages where we’ll be able to go live, some 3-on-3, some 5-on-5, and we’ll see how he responds after each one of those days,” Mosley said, per Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel (subscription required). “Then we’ll be able to tell you accordingly, you’ll know whether he is or isn’t [ready] on opening night.”
- After announcing last week that rookie guard Kam Jones could miss multiple weeks due to a back issue, Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle provided an update on Thursday, telling Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star (Twitter link) to check back in on Jones around November 9. That’s the same date that T.J. McConnell (hamstring) is scheduled to be reevaluated.
- Timberwolves forward Joe Ingles, diagnosed last week with a left groin strain, has been cleared for basketball activities and will be available for Thursday’s game against Chicago, the team announced today in a press release.
Warriors, Lakers Top 2025 NBA Franchise Valuations
The Warriors are still the NBA’s most valuable team, according to Kurt Badenhausen of Sportico, who unveiled the website’s updated NBA franchise valuations for 2025 on Thursday.
Badenhausen projects the Warriors’ value at $11.33 billion, which represents an incredible 24% increase from last year’s $9.14 billion valuation. The NFL’s Dallas Cowboys, at $12.8 billion, continue to be the only global sports franchise whose valuation comes in higher than Golden State’s, according to Sportico’s projections.
As Badenhausen outlines, the Warriors lead the NBA in revenue by a significant margin, having generated an estimated $833MM last season. Golden State makes more than $5MM per game in ticket revenue, along with $2.5MM from luxury suites; the club also has a $45MM per year jersey patch deal with Rakuten, earns almost double what any other team makes in sponsorship revenue, and is one of the few teams to fully own and operate its arena, per Sportico.
After placing third a year ago, the Lakers have jumped to second place on Sportico’s 2025 list at $10 billion, based on Mark Walter‘s recent agreement to purchase the team at that valuation. The Lakers moved slightly ahead of the third-place Knicks, who come in at $9.85 billion.
Every team’s valuation has increased by at least 9% since last year, per Sportico, with the average value of an NBA franchise now at $5.51 billion (up 20% from 2024) and no team worth less than $4 billion.
The average valuation has more than doubled since 2022, when it was $2.58 billion. As Badenhausen writes, the NBA’s new $76 billion media rights deal and its global ambitions – including the possible creation of a league in Europe – have played a part in those gains.
Although the Warriors’ $833MM is something out of an outlier, NBA teams generated an average of approximately $408MM in revenue last season, according to Badenhausen, with the Grizzlies coming in last at $301MM. Memphis also ranks 30th on Sportico’s list of franchise values.
Despite placing at the bottom of this list, the Grizzlies actually had the most significant increase in their franchise valuation this past year, rising from $3.06 billion to $4 billion (31%). The Pelicans (30%), Timberwolves (29%), and Eastern Conference champion Pacers (27%) were the other biggest risers.
Of course, it’s worth noting that figures from Sportico or any other media outlet are just estimates and often don’t quite match up with the sale prices for franchises that change hands. But these projections are usually in the right ballpark and remain useful for getting a sense of the league’s most and least valuable teams.
Here’s Sportico’s full list of NBA franchise valuations for 2025:
- Golden State Warriors: $11.33 billion
- Los Angeles Lakers: $10 billion
- New York Knicks: $9.85 billion
- Los Angeles Clippers: $6.72 billion
- Boston Celtics: $6.35 billion
- Brooklyn Nets: $6.22 billion
- Chicago Bulls: $6.12 billion
- Miami Heat: $6.03 billion
- Philadelphia 76ers: $5.61 billion
- Houston Rockets: $5.53 billion
- Dallas Mavericks: $5.24 billion
- Toronto Raptors: $5.22 billion
- Phoenix Suns: $5.09 billion
- Atlanta Hawks: $5.02 billion
- Sacramento Kings: $5 billion
- Cleveland Cavaliers: $4.86 billion
- Denver Nuggets: $4.8 billion
- Washington Wizards: $4.78 billion
- Indiana Pacers: $4.76 billion
- Milwaukee Bucks: $4.54 billion
- San Antonio Spurs: $4.5 billion
- Oklahoma City Thunder: $4.34 billion
- Utah Jazz: $4.27 billion
- Portland Trail Blazers: $4.25 billion
- Minnesota Timberwolves: $4.24 billion
- Orlando Magic: $4.21 billion
- Detroit Pistons: $4.17 billion
- Charlotte Hornets: $4.13 billion
- New Orleans Pelicans: $4.02 billion
- Memphis Grizzlies: $4 billion
As Badenhausen notes, Sportico’s projections are based on a control sale price, rather than limited stake purchases. Controlling shares in the Celtics, Lakers, and Trail Blazers all changed hands this past year, though only the Celtics sale has been formally approved by the NBA so far.
William Chisholm is buying the Celtics in two stages, with an initial valuation of $6.1 billion and a blended valuation of roughly $6.5 billion. Walter is purchasing the Lakers at a valuation of $10 billion, while Tom Dundon is buying the Blazers at a $4.25 billion valuation.
2025/26 NBA Over/Unders: Southwest Division
With the 2025/26 NBA regular season just around the corner, we’re getting serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign and continuing an annual Hoops Rumors tradition.
With the help of the lines from a series of sports betting sites – including BetMGM and BetOnline – we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division. In a series of team-by-team polls, you’ll get the chance to weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.
In 2024/25, our voters went 13-17 on their over/under picks. Can we top that in ’25/26?
We’ll wrap up our series today with the Southwest Division…
Houston Rockets
- 2024/25 record: 52-30
- Over/under for 2025/26: 52.5 wins
- Major offseason moves:
San Antonio Spurs
- 2024/25 record: 34-48
- Over/under for 2025/26: 44.5 wins
- Major offseason moves:
Dallas Mavericks
- 2024/25 record: 39-43
- Over/under for 2025/26: 41.5 wins
- Major offseason moves:
- Added: Cooper Flagg, D’Angelo Russell
- Lost: Spencer Dinwiddie, Olivier-Maxence Prosper, Kai Jones
Memphis Grizzlies
- 2024/25 record: 48-34
- Over/under for 2025/26: 39.5 wins
- Major offseason moves:
New Orleans Pelicans
- 2024/25 record: 21-61
- Over/under for 2025/26: 30.5 wins
- Major offseason moves:
Previous voting results:
- New York Knicks (53.5 wins): Over (63.2%)
- Boston Celtics (42.5 wins): Over (52.7%)
- Philadelphia 76ers (42.5 wins): Under (58.7%)
- Toronto Raptors (37.5 wins): Over (50.2%)
- Brooklyn Nets (20.5 wins): Over (54.4%)
- Cleveland Cavaliers (56.5 wins): Over (58.0%)
- Detroit Pistons (46.5 wins): Over (60.5%)
- Milwaukee Bucks (42.5 wins): Over (74.4%)
- Indiana Pacers (37.5 wins): Over (50.1%)
- Chicago Bulls (32.5 wins): Over (60.8%)
- Orlando Magic (51.5 wins): Over (52.8%)
- Atlanta Hawks (47.5 wins): Over (54.9%)
- Miami Heat (37.5 wins): Over (54.4%)
- Charlotte Hornets (27.5 wins): Over (50.6%)
- Washington Wizards (21.5 wins): Under (62.4%)
- Oklahoma City Thunder (62.5 wins): Over (62.9%)
- Denver Nuggets (53.5 wins): Over (72.1%)
- Minnesota Timberwolves (49.5 wins): Over (58.7%)
- Portland Trail Blazers (34.5 wins): Over (57.1%)
- Utah Jazz (18.5 wins): Over (55.3%)
- Los Angeles Clippers (48.5 wins): Under (58.7%)
- Los Angeles Lakers (48.5 wins): Under (52.1%)
- Golden State Warriors (46.5 wins): Over (68.3%)
- Sacramento Kings (34.5 wins): Over (55.1%)
- Phoenix Suns (31.5 wins): Under (56.8%)
Southwest Notes: Flagg, Hardy, Nembhard, Morant, Jackson Jr., Barnes
Cooper Flagg, point guard? At least for this week, that’s his spot. With D’Angelo Russell sitting out against Utah in the Mavericks’ preseason game on Monday, Flagg got the nod at the point in a jumbo lineup featuring P.J. Washington, Klay Thompson, Anthony Davis and Dereck Lively II, Marc Stein of the Stein Line tweets.
The Mavericks staff is eager to see what the No. 1 overall pick in the draft can do in different roles. Flagg responded on Monday with 11 points. He had just one assist but no turnovers.
“When you look at what Cooper’s done here, it’s been really good,” coach Jason Kidd said, per Grant Afseth of the Dallas Hoops Journal. “We’ve put him in different situations — running the offense, running plays, playing off the ball. There are things he has to improve. He’s not perfect yet, but being able to make plays and understand the game at a high level at 18 has been really cool to watch.”
Kidd plans to go with the same lineup against the Lakers, according to Afseth.
“You’ll probably see that group start again on Wednesday,” Kidd said.
Here’s more from the Southwest Division:
- Kidd used Ryan Nembhard, who is signed to a two-way contract, as the first point guard off the bench ahead of Jaden Hardy, Mike Curtis of the Dallas Morning News notes (Twitter links). Hardy has struggled in the preseason and Kidd wants him to be more than a scorer. “I think growth has to be able to not just score the ball. We know he can do that,” the Mavericks‘ head coach said. “Can he make plays for others? Can he get us set in the offense? Being able to compete on the defensive end. He’s going to get a great opportunity in preseason to show that he has grown.” Hardy signed a three-year, $18MM extension last year which kicks in this season.
- Grizzlies stars Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. are making good progress in their rehab from injuries, head coach Tuomas Iisalo said on Tuesday, per Damichael Cole of the Memphis Commercial Appeal. “Both guys are progressing really well and are able to do significantly more than one week ago,” Iisalo said. Morant is considered week-to-week with a sprained left ankle. Jackson is recovering from turf toe surgery. Neither has seen action in the preseason.
- Expect Harrison Barnes to remain in a starting role with the Spurs, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News writes (subscription required). While head coach Mitch Johnson has yet to announce an opening night lineup, Barnes has not come off the bench in any game since the 2015/16 season. He enters his 14th season riding a streak of 304 consecutive games played. “I’m just trying to be out there for every game,” said Barnes, who has an expiring $19MM contract.
Five Under-The-Radar Veteran Extension Candidates To Watch
The deadline for teams to sign players to rookie scale extensions is a week from today, and we'll be keeping an eye on several notable rookie scale extension candidates in the coming days. That group includes Pistons teammates Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren, Nuggets guard Christian Braun, Hawks guard Dyson Daniels, Rockets forward Tari Eason, Kings forward Keegan Murray, and Trail Blazers guard Shaedon Sharpe.
A number of big-name players are also eligible for veteran contract extensions, with Rockets forward Kevin Durant, Heat guard Tyler Herro, and Hawks guard Trae Young among those we're been monitoring ahead of the 2025/26 season.
However, many of the most viable extension candidates have flown somewhat under the radar this fall, so we want to shine a spotlight on some of those players today. In the space below, we'll take a closer look at five players who are eligible for veteran contract extensions and who could realistically sign new contracts either before opening night or at some point during the season.
Let's dive in...
Southwest Notes: Castle, Eisley, Thompson, Rockets Preseason, China
Last season’s Rookie of the Year, Stephon Castle, will make his preseason debut on Monday, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express News reports.
Castle missed the Spurs‘ first three preseason contests with a right knee contusion. He suffered the injury during the team’s Oct. 4 Silver & Black scrimmage after banging knees with Victor Wembanyama.
With De’Aaron Fox expected to be sidelined at the beginning of the regular season, Castle is projected to be the Spurs’ opening-night starter at point guard.
We have more from the Southwest Division:
- The Mavericks have hired Howard Eisley as a scout, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype tweets. Eisley was an assistant for Michigan under previous head coach Juwan Howard. He has also been an assistant coach with the Knicks, Wizards and Clippers.
- Klay Thompson was assigned to guard Hornets point man LaMelo Ball during a preseason game, but Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd indicated the team can’t expect the 35-year-old wing to take on those matchups on a regular basis. “Melo’s a little different because he can score and pass,” Kidd said, per Grant Afseth of the Dallas Hoops Journal. “But we thought looking at that (Saturday) was something we needed to see. Making it tough on Melo isn’t easy — he’s gonna have the ball 90% of the time. But I thought Klay did a good job. He can still compete at that level at this stage of his career. We’re not going to ask him to do it every night, but (Saturday) he showed he can compete.”
- The Rockets wrap up their preseason schedule with games on Tuesday and Thursday this week. Playing time and rotations in the next two games will be more reflective of what they want to implement in the regular season, according to Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle. Starters will have their minutes increased to the mid-20s and 30-range, and the team will utilize more sophisticated schemes.
- The Mavericks and Rockets will play a preseason game in China next year, Mike Curtis of the Dallas Morning News tweets. Mavs governor Patrick Dumont confirmed via the South China Morning Post that Dallas will participate in next season’s NBA China Games. “Yes, the Mavericks and the Rockets, here in Macau next year. Are you ready?” Dumont said.
Southwest Notes: Harper, Jones Garcia, Wells, Durant
The reviews were all positive as the Spurs got their first preseason look at rookie guard Dylan Harper Friday night, according to Michael C. Wright of ESPN. The No. 2 pick in this year’s draft sat out the first two games as a precaution after undergoing thumb surgery in September, and he enjoyed the chance to showcase his skills in a game setting.
“Just being back out on the court with them guys, just getting the chemistry going before the season starts, it just felt good to play again,” Harper said. “My teammates do a great job of empowering me, and they’re going to let me know what I do wrong. But ultimately, they’re here to help me out and I’m here to help them out. Just having that confidence behind me is very helpful.”
Harper checked into the game midway through the first quarter and picked up two quick assists on alley-oop passes to Victor Wembanyama and Luke Kornet, per Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News (subscription required). He only played 18 minutes due to a medical restriction, but he ran the offense while he was on the court and finished with a game-high plus-minus rating of +20. He also picked up full-court on defense and vowed that part of his game will get better as his conditioning improves.
“It’s just another step for him and his young career as he’s going to continue to grow,” coach Mitch Johnson said. “Obviously, he made some plays, which hopefully he’ll feel good about. But just to be able to do it in front of fans and in the bright lights, whether it was the plays that people will talk about when he scored, made a shot or made a good pass. Just to be able to go through team defense and run the floor, it is just invaluable experience.”
There’s more from the Southwest Division:
- David Jones Garcia‘s outstanding Summer League performance has carried over into the preseason, McDonald adds in the same story. The 23-year-old small forward, who signed a two-way contract with the Spurs after earning All-Summer First Team honors in Las Vegas, scored 20 points in the fourth quarter and overtime in Friday’s win over Utah. “He’s competitive,” Johnson said. “He is obviously dynamic with the basketball and has the ability to put the ball in the hole. If he can raise that other part of his game to match that, then he’s got a real chance.”
- The Grizzlies are counting on Jaylen Wells to take on an expanded offensive role after trading Desmond Bane to Orlando, notes Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. That means some play-making duties as well as increased scoring for the second-year swingman. “Overall, I think he’s on a very nice growth trajectory,” coach Tuomas Iisalo said. “He’s being asked to be a secondary handler in our offense right now, and he’s doing a pretty good job with it — like today, when he’s more assertive and finds his spots. I’m very happy with his development.”
- Kevin Durant is already displaying on-court chemistry with Alperen Sengun as he played his first game with the Rockets on Wednesday, writes William Guillory of The Athletic. They ran a two-man game throughout the night that looked polished, even though it was their first time as teammates. Guillory observes that Sengun is the most talented center Durant has ever played alongside, and the combination forces tough decisions for opposing defenses.