Better Award Chances: Spurs' Stephon Castle or Keldon Johnson?

Both San Antonio Spurs players have potentially strong cases for the Rookie of the Year and Sixth Man of the Year, respectively.

Mar 29, 2024; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson (3) reacts during the second half against the New York Knicks at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images / Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

Ahead of the 2024-25 season, the San Antonio Spurs have multiple players whose names could be thrown in the award conversation.

Victor Wembanyama and the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year may be the obvious one, but Keldon Johson and Stephon Castle could go for the Sixth Man and Rookie of the Year awards, respectively.

As of now, Johnson is sporting +5000 odds as the 24th best for his award, while Castle has a +2000 — the fourth best odds for any rookie. Johnson is a long shot to win, while Castle is a favorite.

Last season, the unquestionable sixth man for the San Antonio Spurs was none other than Johnson.

READ MORE: Spurs Veteran Keldon Johnson Surrenders No. 3 to Chris Paul

Although it was a new role for the forward after primarily serving as a starter for much of his career, he thrived in a bench capacity with averages of 15.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game on 45.4 percent shooting from the field and 34.6 percent from behind the arc.

Johnson's ability to create scoring opportunities for himself lends him as a top option for the Spurs offensively, and especially as a sixth man, it allows him to be a spark plug in the lineup. Moving him to the bench wasn't because he was a lesser player — it just made more sense for the roster as a whole.

Mar 29, 2024; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson (3) reacts during the second half against the New York Knicks at Frost Bank Center. / Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

The 24-year-old may not have high odds for the award, but he could shock many on a San Antonio team that is shaping up to be a Play-In Tournament contender. There's potential low-risk, high-reward with Johnson.

As for Castle — the No. 4 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft — he has an opportunity to immediately be a high-impact player for the Spurs.

The former UConn Husky comes into San Antonio as its potential franchise point guard of the future, but for now it seems like he'll start out on the bench. The Spurs brought in longtime veteran Chris Paul during free agency, who is likely to start early on to help grow and develop not only Castle, but Wembanyama and the rest of their core.

READ MORE: Stephon Castle Knows Winning, Now Has Chance To Keep At It

Castle's impact could be huge right away, brining a combo guard skillset to the roster. Not only is he a strong interior scorer and playmaker, he's a physical defender at 6-foot-6. It might take him some time to adjust to the NBA before starting over Paul, but until then, he's going to be a pivotal piece on San Antonio's bench.

Jul 13, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle (5) dribbles against the Portland Trail Blazers during the first quarter at Thomas & Mack Center. / Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

How long Castle will remain on the bench could be a determinant on if a Rookie of the Year win is realistic or not. It's a disadvantage if other rookies get starting positions, but It's possible he could be placed over Paul within the first couple months of the season. That would give him a bigger chance to grow his counting stats, and better outlook on taking home the award.

There is by no means a clear-cut favorite for the award, so Castle's odds might be more favorable than Johnson's. There's less of a deep competition between the candidates, and as long as Castle receives a significant amount of minutes for most of the season, he has the ability to finish with an award-winning final posting.