'Old Guy' Josh Primo Leader of Spurs' New Youth Movement

Even a year after being the youngest active player in the league, Primo is already viewed as the head of a rebuilding corps

At 19-years-old, Josh Primo is just a few months older than the three-newest draft picks for the San Antonio Spurs despite having a leg-up in NBA exposure.

And even on a Vegas Summer League roster where he remains one of the youngest players, Primo finds himself as one of the clear-cut leaders based on skill and NBA experience alone. 

He spoke to Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News prior to heading to Las Vegas about the unique mentality the team has despite the youth. 

“It’s crazy,” said Primo, “We’re all (born in) 2003. It was fun to talk about that, but we’re all basketball players. It doesn’t matter what age, you just go out and compete.”

The Spurs will be without the team's top selection and No. 9 overall pick Jeremy Sochan for all of Summer League after his stint with COVID. But Primo, along with Malaki Branham and Blake Wesley, got their first chance to compete on Friday against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Despite a 99-90 loss, the trio led the Spurs in scoring despite the inconsistencies the team might've shown as a whole. Primo and Wesley both had 20 points and five assists, while Branham added 15 points and three rebounds. 

Primo scored 11 of his 20 in the final four minutes of the game and had his fair share of struggles early. Faced with some early double-teams and relegating point guard duties to Wesley, he was close to being smacked with the premature "overrated" label by box-score watchers.

But his shot-creation ability was eye-popping in the final minutes and clearly stood out amongst either team. It certainly wasn't a performance that met the Alabama product's expectations for himself, but it was a promising sign of the growth, both physically and skillfully, he's had behind closed doors this offseason. 

“When I first came into the league, it was tough for me,” Primo said. “It was a little bit of a learning curve. Now I feel like the game has slowed down and I’m able to handle contact a little better.”

The Toronto native averaged 5.8 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 50 appearances and 16 starts his rookie year. He showed raw, but NBA-ready potential last season that made fans feel more at ease following general manager Brian Wright's surprise selection of Primo at No. 12 overall last year. 

Barring a major trade prior to the season, he and third-year guard Tre Jones are seemingly the only players on the roster in contention for lead-guard duties now that Dejounte Murray, Lonnie Walker IV, and Derrick White are all elsewhere. 

And still with room to grow, Primo understands the prepartion required if you want to survive in this league, something he may have no choice but to do this season based on how the roster fills out. 

“I think I’ve learned with each game, it takes a certain level of focus and preparation,” Primo said. “If you’re not ready to come play, any team can give you the business. Just coming into each game with that mindset, I think it’s going to help me a lot going into next year.”

The Spurs will look to improve to 1-1 Sunday night at the Thomas & Mack Center against the NBA champion Golden State Warriors, who are returning 2020 second-overall pick James Wiseman from injury for his first appearance in Summer League.

It remains to be seen who will handle lead-guard duties between him and Wesley for game two in Vegas. Regardless, Primo's effortless scoring prowess should be on full display against a team that features Moses Moody and Jonathan Kuminga, two players who got experience in the NBA Finals last month.

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You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7

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