Mid-Season Rankings: Spurs Earn Passing Grade After 'Turning Corner'

In CBS Sports' most recent league-wide ranking, the NBA's-youngest San Antonio Spurs earned a more favorable mid-season grade than expected after finding some recent success, albeit inconsistent.

There hasn't been a time this season when the San Antonio Spurs didn't have work to do.

Whether it was before the season working to find a role for Victor Wembanyama, figuring out who would crack the starting lineup and who would come off the bench or even finding ways to involve other new faces like Cedi Osman and Sidy Cissoko, that's been abundantly true. 

And coming off of a season when San Antonio almost didn't make it to 20 wins, it makes sense why. Rome wasn't built in a day — and neither will the next great Spurs dynasty. There is still a lot of work for the youngest team in the NBA to accomplish, but things have been looking up as of late. 

In fact, the Spurs' recent play was enough to earn them a passing grade (C-) on CBS Sports' league-wide analysis.

"The Spurs have actually turned a corner over the last week, thanks to some lineup and position changes that were well overdue," the site wrote. "Tre Jones was finally inserted into the starting lineup as point guard, Jeremy Sochan was moved back to his natural position of power forward and Wembanyama was moved to center."

Dec 28, 2023; Portland, Oregon, USA; San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) high-fives teammates during introductions before a game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Moda Center / © Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports

Lineups and experiments have told the story of the Spurs' season to this point. First, it was Jeremy Sochan as a starting point guard, and then it was Zach Collins and Tre Jones off the bench as a form of stability for the young team. 

Then, it was Wembanyama as a center instead of a power forward and most recently, it was Jones in the starting lineup — the switch that's created the most success as Wembanyama has found his consistency. And that was duly noted.

Rhyme & Reason: How Collins and Jones 'Provide Stability' for Spurs Via Bench Unit

"Moving [Wembanyama] to center has massively improved San Antonio's defense," CBS Sports continued. "And putting Jones into the starting lineup gives Wembanyama someone who is far more equipped to get him the ball in the post and elsewhere."

As it was at the beginning of the season and at the peak of their 18-game losing streak, the Spurs still have ample work to do. They've been able to win more games, yes, but still not consistently. Wembanyama can score yes, but he can't do everything for the young team. Not yet, at least. 

So, considering they've still yet to crack a win total in the double digits, a passing grade is generous. The Spurs just hope they can give the NBA an ever-increasing reason to continue to grade them that way. 

Not that they're worried about that.