The NBA breaks for All-Star weekend, and then the wheels came off before San Antonio resumed their season.
The Spurs announced on Friday that All Star and reigning NBA Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama would be shut down for the remainder of the regular season with deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder. The issue was noticed after Wembanyama returned from the Bay Area, where he took part in Saturday’s Skills Competition, and Sunday’s All Star Game.
Then on Saturday the team announced that Hall of Fame head coach Gregg Popovich would miss the remainder of the season, as he is still recovering from a minor stroke that occurred on November 2. Popovich, 76, has only coached 10 games this season.
In Popovich’s absence, Mitch Johnson has been the interim head coach, but the Spurs have since fallen to 12th in the Western Conference, now three games out of the final play-in spot, and just 1.5 games up on Portland for 13th. Popovich has won the NBA Coach of the Year award three times, and has five championships with the Spurs.
San Antonio has not made the playoffs since 2019, and has not been out of the first round since advancing to the 2017 Western Conference Finals. The Spurs are currently tied with Detroit for the longest postseason drought at five years, but still cannot hold a candle to Charlotte’s eight. The Pistons seem well poised to snap their drought this year, currently sitting comfortably in sixth in the Eastern Conference.
Wembanyama, the first overall pick a season ago, was averaging 24.3 points in 46 games. The 21-year-old from France had increased his scoring average in year two, along with upping his shooting percentage by over a full point. “Wemby” was part of the NBA’s All-Defensive First Team last season, and was the favorite to win the Defensive Player of the Year award this year.
That award is now a two-man race between Memphis’ Jaren Jackson Jr., and Cleveland’s Evan Mobley.
The Spurs’ are planning on being able to use Wembanyama, Fox, and this year’s first round pick Stephon Castle to recreate the big three during their dynasty from the mid 2000’s. Castle, a finalist in Saturday’s Slam Dunk Competition, was averaging 12.8 points and 25.3 minutes in 53 games. Johnson has been toying most of the season with Castle in and out of the starting lineup, where his shooting has struggled at times. Betting odds had Castle as high as second at one point this season in Rookie of the Year voting, but a number of games scoring below 20 points have been part of the reason why San Antonio has hovered around .500 for most of the season.
Everyone knew the day was going to come when Gregg Popovich would no longer be the head coach of the San Antonio Spurs, having been at the helm since 1996. That day may be upon us, as there were reports that Popovich would explore his future after the season. Whether this implies that he will move into the Spurs’ front office, or step away, completely remains to be seen. Former Philadelphia 76ers head coach Brett Brown is one of Popovich’s top assistants, and may be a candidate to take over full time if the Spurs cannot turn their season around over the final 28 games. Johnson was the interim coach twice before, but only for one game each time.
In May 2021, Popovich took a game off to attend Tim Duncan’s Hall of Fame induction, which the Spurs lost. Popovich missed a game in March 2023 due to illness, which Johnson coached the team to a win. Other than Covid-shortened seasons or lockouts, Popovich has missed just these two games in nearly 30 years. The five-year drought was also the first time San Antonio missed the playoffs in a full season since Popovich took over during the lockout-shortened 1996-97 season.
San Antonio now turns to Fox, who is set to be an unrestricted free agent after next season, to try to right the ship for the remaining two months. Thus far Fox has averaged 23 points and 7.3 assists in seven games. Devin Vassell has also contributed nicely as of late, scoring 15.6 points in 39 games. Vassell was another first round pick by San Antonio, 11th overall in 2020.
Every team eventually goes through a lengthy rebuild. The Hornets have been doing it annually since the NBA moved back to the Queen City in 2004. Buffalo has not seen the postseason in hockey in 13 years. This drought shall pass in San Antonio, but first the rebuild must be fully committed to.
Which means life after Gregg Popovich behind the bench, and hopefully a complete recovery for Victor Wembanyama.
-JC24