Why San Antonio Spurs' November Serves As Early-Season Temp Check
The San Antonio Spurs hope their December will be much different than November.
It's been a rough going for the Spurs, to say the least, though talking with players after losses continue to pile up paints a different image. Through the hardships, the roster is remaining sold on each other and their vision moving forward.
Jeremy Sochan made that abundantly clear.
"Definitely," he said when asked if the Spurs' players-only meeting was beneficial. "That was a really important meeting for us. We talked a lot. It was a pretty good session for us to just communicate ... get things out, and just be on the same terms."
Since that meeting, San Antonio has lost back-to-back games on the road. One came in the fourth quarter against the Golden State Warriors, while the other was never truly attainable — facing Nikola Jokic is a tall order, after all — but both added to the 12-game losing streak that now stands as a franchise-fourth-worst.
The Spurs want to win games. The players want to be successful, and Gregg Popovich wants that for them, too.
"The effort is there, and I can see the wheels turning," the veteran coach said back when the Spurs' lost five games in a row. "They're learning about each other, [and] I'm really proud of them. Nobody likes to lose, but they're getting smarter with every game."
Judging by record alone, that hasn't exactly proven true. San Antonio only continued its slide from that point, and is still in dire need of some positive change, but the improvement process isn't linear, nor simple.
But the Spurs are still going to try. The first full month of the season has been merely a "temp check" on where they stand.
The San Antonio Spurs' starting unit (minus Devin Vassell) stands in a huddle on the court at Frost Bank Center.
© Reginald Thomas II-San Antonio Spurs
What's Wrong With the Spurs?
If the Spurs walked into a doctor's office, they'd be running a high-grade fever.
At the beginning of the season, excitement was at an all-time high and expectations were higher. Adding Victor Wembanyama to round out the NBA's youngest team generated that excitement on its own, but where that sentiment was abundant, the realism was near absent.
The Spurs added one player to a roster that fought to get to 20 wins in the season prior, and it should be worth noting that the rookie in question is still over a year away from being able to drink the champagne he hopes to pop with his teammates down the road. Wembanyama is 19 years old on a team that features a 31-year-old Doug McDermott as its oldest player, though he does like being "the old guy."
"It feels great to be the old guy," McDermott said prior to the season. "I'm just trying my best to be a good leader."
But McDermott being the Spurs' oldest player and Wembanyama the youngest doesn't explain the team's woes, does it?
It does. The Spurs' biggest problem thus far has been consistency — or a lack thereof. Wembanyama has played well. The only major stat he isn't leading the roster in is shooting percentage, and he's still working to find his groove there.
But Wembanyama's ability to lead the roster — and all rookies — in many of the game's biggest stat categories only makes him more of an outlier. An alien.
Because some of the other Spurs players cannot say the same thing.
Keldon Johnson has had himself a decent season, though it's nowhere near the level he, or many others, were expecting. Prior to the regular season, it wasn't a far-fetched idea for Johnson to be in a prime position to make an All-Star case. He was the best player on the Spurs a year ago, and with another year of development under his belt, he was ready to thrive, especially with less defensive attention due to adding Wembanyama.
But that hasn't been the case.
Spurs forward Keldon Johnson prior to facing Minnesota.
© Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports
Johnson is still playing well, but not to level San Antonio had hoped for from its supposed best player. Again, that only adds to the inconsistency that the Spurs have found, but Johnson still upholds his leadership-based confidence.
“We’re getting better," he said following the Spurs' loss to the Heat. "We're learning more and more. ... We [have to] continue to grow, continue to learn, go over film and continue to get better on the things that we can control.”
Besides Johnson, Devin Vassell has easily put himself near the top of the roster as its best scorer. He isn't averaging the most points, but with a fresh contract beneath him, he's proven himself ready to take on a larger role. And that he has, but he also doesn't possess the "it-factor." He's not taking over games to will the Spurs to victories.
He's also not supposed to just yet, which Popovich made clear prior to facing a loaded LA Clippers squad a few games ago.
"When a team is [this] young, each [player] is hesitant," Popovich said. "Usually your leaders are your best players. And they're usually All-Stars. So, when games wind down, we're going to be all over the map. ... All-Stars aren't coming after you while you don't really have that guy, yet."
The 27-year coach summed it up nicely. San Antonio is missing the guy on its roster. It has pieces — and promising ones, at that — but it's still young.
A lot of the media attention centered around Wembanyama have put the Spurs in an unfavorable position, however. Because of how "generational" the 7-4 rookie was supposed to be, the general narrative then became that San Antonio would be contending this season. That was simply a narrative pushed too hard.
The point guard situation is one of its own. Jeremy Sochan hasn't been able to impact the game but once in the way a true solid point guard would, but his ceiling at the position is enough to warrant Tre Jones' continued bench minutes. While Sochan learns, however, the Spurs' stats will suffer. And that's been apparent.
So, call it how you will. The Spurs have plenty to work on between continuing to develop their young players like Jones, Vassell, Sochan, Wembanyama and even guys like Malaki Branham and Julian Champagnie. Yes, there is something that needs changing, but it will begin to surface over time. It's still early in the season.
And if any player is aware of that, it's Victor.
Wembanyama's Confidence Remains
Victor Wembanyama knew he was going to be a San Antonio Spur.
When NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum stood at the podium inside Barclays Center to award the South-Texas team with the No. 1 pick, it all-but confirmed that.
"There's a special relation[ship] between France and the Spurs because of Tony [Parker] and also Boris [Diaw]," Wembanyama said. "I know half of the country, if not the whole country wanted the Spurs to have the first pick."
The rookie later revealed that he felt it would happen before the announcement was made, which might even explain the smile he flashed when the Houston Rockets fell all the way to No. 4. But back then, the only thing he knew about San Antonio was that there was a French connection and that he'd be donning Silver & Black nightly.
What he pictured beyond that was up to him, though it likely included visuals of multiple championship banners along with a couple of Finals MVP trophies.
Those fantasies were before San Antonio took the court for the first time of the regular season. Before it fell to 0-1 and Wembanyama started his career with a loss. Before losing at Madison Square Garden, giving up a 20-point lead to the Toronto Raptors and losing the most games in a row since the rookie played goalkeeper in grade-level soccer. Before the media began to demand more from him.
But still, even after all of the hardships that have told the story of his rookie year, Wembanyama's confidence remains. In himself, the city and the team.
Nov 2, 2023; Phoenix, Arizona: Detailed view as a media member uses an iPhone to film San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) prior to the game against the Phoenix Suns at Footprint Center.
© Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
"This is probably the worst Victor we'll ever see," Wembanyama said during shoot-around media on Tuesday. "I believe I will keep getting better and better every year, so it's promising.
"Everybody comes with a purpose. Everybody comes to do good at work. Everybody knows where we're going. Most of the people here have been through everything before. We're in great hands."
Being through everything means winning, losing and, well, everything in-between. It's hard to sell a player on a franchise that hasn't been in the conversation for just about anything over the last few years, but the Spurs did it for Wembanyama. Between a coach like Popovich, a city with extensive culture and just the sheer uniqueness of his personality, San Antonio has proven to be a strong fit for the young rookie.
Even, arguably, the best player in the world sees it.
"He's 19 years old. he's not getting tired or getting scared," Jokic said of Wembanyama. "He's playing hard and he wants to be good. ... He doesn't take it for granted. He's making mistakes, which is normal. I think the media around him doesn't help, but he's going to get used to it.
"He's going to change the game, 100 percent."
Wembanyama has a long way to go before he's truly one of the league's superstars.
Even he's struggled with consistency this season, though over the last few games, it's begun to look like he's found his rhythm on both ends of the floor. And as hyped up as he was, he certainly hasn't disappointed.
For a Spurs team wanting to win, keeping the players bought in is crucial. The good news is, they seem to have already done that themselves. They're committed to each other ... "definitely" — if you asked Sochan. But still, none more than Wembanyama.
He's focused on being the best he can be for San Antonio. And he'll double down on that any day of the week, whether it's a win or a loss. That's what sets him apart.
“The struggle every day is what makes us better,” Wembanyama said.
The Spurs are struggling, but they're not out of it. Not yet.
They simply received a temp check.
