- Jock Landale is hopeful he’ll still be wearing a Spurs uniform next season, as he told Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express News. He had a 26-point, 7-rebound game against Indiana on Saturday but his $1.56MM salary for next season isn’t guaranteed. “This is where I want to be long-term if I can,” Landale said. “I don’t want to go anywhere. Me and my fiancée love it here. I love the organization, love the boys I play with.”
- In the same story, McDonald points out that Spurs lottery pick Joshua Primo has seen his offensive numbers go down while his playing time has gone up. Primo is averaging 24.8 MPG this month but he’s only averaging 6.0 PPG on 37.5% shooting in those games. Teammate Devin Vassell has an explanation. “It’s the rookie wall,” he said. “It’s real.”
There’s no indication that Quin Snyder, the NBA’s fourth longest-tenured head coach, is in any danger of losing his job with the Jazz. However, in his latest Substack article, Marc Stein says he has heard Snyder’s name come up more and more frequently as a potential Gregg Popovich successor with the Spurs.
Before he was hired by the Jazz, and before he served as an assistant for the Hawks, Lakers, and 76ers, Snyder jump-started his NBA coaching career by serving as the head coach of the G League’s Austin Toros – San Antonio’s then-affiliate – from 2007-10. According to Stein, the Spurs would “naturally relish” the opportunity to bring him back to the organization once Popovich retires.
Still, the Spurs’ decision on a successor for Popovich could be a ways off yet. Stein says, if pressed, he’d lean toward Popovich sticking with the Spurs for at least one more season rather than calling it a career later this year.
Here’s more from Stein:
- Stein is the latest reporter to state that the Pistons are believed to have strong interest in Knicks center Mitchell Robinson, who will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. Several other outlets, including SNY.tv, The New York Daily News, and HoopsHype, have previously reported Detroit’s interest in Robinson.
- According to Stein, there have been “rumbles in league coaching circles” that if the Knicks want to move on from head coach Tom Thibodeau this spring, president of basketball operations Leon Rose would have to be willing to be the team’s voice “out in front” of that decision. As Stein points out, Rose has operated almost exclusively behind the scenes since taking control of the Knicks’ front office, rarely speaking to reporters, which perhaps bodes well for Thibodeau’s job security.
- Within his Substack article, Stein also explores the tough decisions facing U.S. players who had been playing for teams in Russia prior to the country’s invasion of Ukraine. Many of those players have left in recent weeks, but some are being offered six-figure bonuses to return, according to Stein, who says there’s a belief in industry circles that several may soon go back to Russia, despite the criticism they’d face.
- Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic hosts a Q&A with Spurs general manager Brian Wright, who’s helping the team usher into a new era of basketball. Wright was named general manager at 36 years old in 2019. He discussed his tenure with the team, Gregg Popovich and more in the brief interview.
- Spurs guard Josh Richardson has embraced his new role as an elder statesman, but it’s unclear if he’ll remain in San Antonio beyond this season, according to Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News. At 28, Richardson is the second-oldest player on the team behind Doug McDermott (30). “When you come to a team that has a rotation set already, it’s going to be a little different,” Richardson said of his limited role thus far. “I knew that coming here. You’ve got to be professional and stay ready.” Richardson has one year left on his contract after signing an extension last summer. He’ll earn $12,196,094 in 2022/23.
- Joe Wieskamp earned a standard deal with the Spurs by trusting in their development process, Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News explores. The Spurs converted Wieskamp’s two-way deal into a traditional contract on Friday. San Antonio drafted the 22-year-old with the No. 41 pick last year.
- In a separate story for the San Antonio Express-News, Orsborn examines a number of recent Spurs takeaways, including a learning lesson for rookie Joshua Primo. The 19-year-old played 11 fourth-quarter minutes against the Hornets on Saturday, finishing with 10 points.
The Celtics were among several teams that expressed interest in Nik Stauskas, coach Ime Udoka told reporters before today’s game (Twitter link from Tim Bontemps of ESPN). Stauskas signed a two-year contract with Boston on Friday after scoring a combined 100 points in his last two G League games. Udoka said the C’s reached out to Stauskas because they need more shooting.
Stauskas has a chance to see playing time as a floor spacer for the rest of the season, adds Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. Many fans were hoping Isaiah Thomas could be brought back to fill the roster opening, but Thomas has signed with the Hornets and Himmelsbach doesn’t think he would have been a good fit because of his defensive liabilities. He suggests that signing Thomas would have been a distraction and could have ultimately harmed his reputation in Boston.
There’s more on the Celtics:
- When Nets forward Kevin Durant became the all-time leading scorer for Team USA at the Summer Olympics, he speculated that Jayson Tatum may someday break that record, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston recalls in a preview of today’s matchup between the two stars. Forsberg notes that Durant made a strong impression on Tatum during their time as international teammates. “It means a lot [to hear Durant’s praise]. I mean he’s definitely somebody I looked up to growing up,” Tatum said. “Getting to have that matchup with him during the playoffs and then being his teammate and having conversation with him overseas, is something I will always remember.”
- The Spurs‘ decision to trade Derrick White last month took him completely by surprise, per Souichi Terada of MassLive. White has turned out to be a perfect fit for the defensive-minded Celtics, but he expected to spend more time in San Antonio. “He was sad, it’s hard to say goodbye to some of those guys you’ve had good relationships with,” said Alex Welsh, White’s friend and former college teammate. “But then he was pumped. We got him all fired up. It was a great day for him in Boston to be able to play that next day. But it was a total shock.”
- Jaylen Brown has been cleared to play today after missing time with a sprained right ankle, but Aaron Nesmith‘s ankle sprain will keep him out for a while, tweets Jared Weiss of The Athletic.
The Spurs have signed D.J. Stewart Jr. and Robert Woodard II to two-way contracts, our JD Shaw tweets. San Antonio had both of its two-way spots open after promoting Devontae Cacok and Joe Wieskamp to the 15-man roster. The Spurs now have a full 17-man roster.
Stewart, 22, went undrafted in 2021 after a couple of seasons with Mississippi State. He hasn’t made his NBA debut yet, but he’s put up solid numbers in the G League with Miami’s affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce. Through 33 games (36.2 MPG) with the Skyforce, he’s averaging 18.7 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 2.9 APG, and 1.3 SPG on .497/.388/.737 shooting.
Like Stewart, Woodard is a Mississippi native who played two seasons with the Bulldogs in college. The two were teammates during the 2019/20 season, and now will be reunited with the Spurs. Woodard was the 40th overall selection of the 2020 draft. He’s barely played in the NBA, logging a total of 87 minutes across 25 games the past two seasons for the Kings.
Woodard was waived by Sacramento on February 10 to make room for the team’s trade additions. He later signed a G League contract and appeared in six games with the Oklahoma City Blue, the Thunder’s affiliate. However, he was still technically an NBA free agent, as no team held his rights until the Spurs signed him. Through 11 G League games split between the Blue and the Stockton Kings, Woodard is averaging 15.8 PPG, 8.1 RPG, and 1.8 APG on .473/.346/.611 shooting.
3:41pm: Both deals are for the rest of the season, tweets Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. That means Cacok and Wieskamp will be eligible for restricted free agency this summer.
2:04pm: The Spurs have promoted both of their two-way players, forward/center Devontae Cacok and swingman Joe Wieskamp, to the 15-man roster, signing them to standard contracts, the team announced today (Twitter link via JD Shaw).
Cacok, 25, has appeared in 11 games for San Antonio this season, averaging 3.6 PPG and 3.3 RPG in 8.4 minutes per contest. The former Laker has been a double-double machine at the G League level, averaging 19.2 PPG and 12.9 RPG in 21 NBAGL appearances (31.6 MPG) for the Austin Spurs.
The 22-year-old Wieskamp, meanwhile, has seen limited action in 17 NBA games as a rookie after being selected 41st overall in the 2021 draft. Like Cacok, he has played a larger role in the G League than in the NBA, averaging 15.9 PPG and 3.9 RPG on .439/.315/.800 shooting in 14 games (33.7 MPG) for Austin.
After buying out Goran Dragic and Tomas Satoransky, the Spurs had two openings on their 15-man roster, so no corresponding moves were required to make room for Cacok and Wieskamp. The club now has a pair of two-way slots open.
The exact terms of Cacok’s and Wieskamp’s new contracts haven’t yet been reported. A standard conversion from a two-way deal would just result in a minimum-salary, rest-of-season contract, but most clubs try to negotiate longer-term agreements. The Spurs wouldn’t be able to offer either player more than a two-year deal.
- Spurs guard Dejounte Murray was fined $20K by the NBA on Wednesday, the league announced (via Twitter). Murray threw the game ball off the legs of a referee during the fourth quarter of the team’s 118-105 loss to the Grizzlies on Monday. He was ejected for the incident.
- The Spurs’ Gregg Popovich is just two victories away from becoming the winningest coach in league history. Popovich, 73, is still as demanding as ever, Murray told The Athletic’s David Aldridge. “It’s all stuff that makes sense,” he said. “That’s the big picture about it. Everything he’s yelling about, or talking about, it all makes sense.”
Although it didn’t happen Saturday night, it’s only a matter of time until Gregg Popovich catches Don Nelson for the most career coaching victories, writes Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News. The Spurs‘ overtime win Friday at Washington was the 1,334th of Popovich’s career, leaving him one behind Nelson, who was one of his coaching mentors.
“Suffice to say, being in this position is awkward, surreal, unexpected, never planned and all of the above,” Popovich said.
The Spurs lost Saturday at Miami, extending Popovich’s wait to reach the record. The team will travel to Memphis on Monday, and with upcoming games against the Kings and Hornets he could be alone at the top by the end of the week.
Among the most impressive things about Popovich’s achievement is that all his wins are with one organization. He took over as San Antonio’s coach early in the 1996/97 season and has remained in that position ever since.
“It just shows you his longevity and excellence for decades,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “It really is remarkable.”
There’s more on the Spurs:
- Keldon Johnson is averaging 20.3 points per game in February, but he understands that he has a long way to go to be a complete player, per Mike Finger of The San Antonio Express-News. Johnson, who’s in his third NBA season, said he welcomes constructive criticism, whether it’s from his acerbic coach or Draymond Green, who served as a mentor during Johnson’s Olympics experience last summer.
- The Spurs are ready to give more responsibility to first-round pick Joshua Primo, Finger adds in a separate story. The youngest player taken in the 2021 draft, Primo divided his time before the All-Star break between the NBA and the G League, but Popovich said he’ll remain with the Spurs for the rest of the season. “He’s going to be a player for us for a long time,” Popovich said. “He shows an uncanny maturity on the court for such a young kid. He’s just getting used to the physicality. He’s playing with men.”
- Trading Derrick White to the Celtics left a hole in the Spurs’ backcourt, but Lonnie Walker sees an opportunity for himself and the team’s other young guards (video link from KENS5). “Derrick was a huge piece for us offensively and defensively,” Walker said. “Losing him was probably one of the hardest things for our team, but it allows us young guys like Devin (Vassell), myself and Primo to continue to grow and get better and play our game.”