Spurs have the overall choice n ° 2 in the 2025 draft. If they were on the chronometer at the moment and that Cooper Flagg had left, who did you choose?
Marilyn Dubinski: It will probably depend on where the Spurs think they need help either, but also in future seasons. Dylan Harper seems to be consensus no. 2 After Flagg, and I would be everywhere in this choice if they had not exchanged against Fox, but will he be redundant with Fox and Castle? The same could be said of VJ Edgecombe. Again, they also need a backup PG. They also desperately need size, but there is a lack of great men who should go so high. Ace Bailey seems to be the most likely candidate who could provide this, although he is a bit of a joker.
Mark Barrington: I think if they keep the choice, they have to go with Harper, who is the best available, and although the adjustment is not ideal, the points of points take time to develop, and get it out of the bench while it adapts to the NBA game would not be bad. If it turns into a star in two or three years, the Spurs could exchange one of their guards for additional players to a position of need or DRAFT capital. I would not be opposed to the exchange of a choice or two to enter Ace Bailey or Edgecombe, but only if the Spurs can pick up another rotation player in the agreement on a reasonable contract.
Jacob Douglas: The editorial staff of Fit concerns the teams that are already competing for the championships. Spurs do not have this luxury. Go get the best player available. It’s Harper. Like Stephon Castle, he’s the size of position to play on and out of the ball. With the defensive versatility of Castle, there is a world where you could even play the three together, with Castle playing the wing. Harper will be a bucket on foot in the NBA with his combination of size, strength, leg play and finishing capacity. If the jumping continues to improve, we could talk about an All-NBA caliber player several times.
Jesus Gomez: I have not yet done a lot of research on the prospects, but what I saw of Harper was impressive, and the experts are enthusiastic about his potential, so I will go. Defensively, Castle can keep wings, so there should not be a big problem. Offensively, the lack of shooting while playing two of Fox, Castle and Harper could be delicate, but having several guys who can go to the paint using the speed or the force could be well overall. I wouldn’t bother me to exchange some places to collect a young veteran, but I would be happy with Harper.
Should Spurs exchange the overall choice n ° 2 for immediate help for Victor Wembanyama, or would that rush the reconstruction?
Dubinski: It depends on what they get in return. The choice was certainly not worth an aging player like Kevin during, but I also have my hesitations to negotiate for Giannis Antetokounmpo because even with the 2nd overall choice, the Spurs should always give several young basic pieces while keeping in mind that he must pay the fox now and Wemby in two years. If Giannis was essentially a rental, it was not worth much. Spurs are at one point that they can go into winning-start mode if they wish, but I would not complain if they kept the choice and did not jump the pistol too much.
Barrington: I do not see how it works with the NBA salary structure, because to take a established star, you must also send players with enough salary to operate the caps of cap. Spurs have already lost their bad contracts in the past two years. You would not want to send several good players and the choice of draft n ° 2 unless you have a superstar player in return. The only “available” player who meets this criterion would be Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is one of the 3 best talents in the League. I would be open to Spurs achieving acquisition, but not to the detriment of avoiding it the depth of the team and the future ability to improve.
Douglas: Do you want to be Oklahoma City Thunder or New Orleans Pelicans? The Thunder has built assets and looks like an NBA champion. New Orleans has conceded its assets twice, first with Anthony Davis and again with Zion Williamson to put pressure for the titles, but that did not work. Consistently, the teams that play it patiently and stack assets have the longest track to compete for the championships. There is no guarantee that Entertetokounmpo brings a championship to San Antonio over the next five years, and he considerably limits what they can do around Fox, Wemby and himself. Choose the best young talents, stay agile and improve. Harper, the fourteenth choice, and any acquisition of free agents should make the Spurs team next year.
Gomez: They must at least entertain the idea. If Wemby is entirely healthy, and there has been no updates that indicates the opposite, it is already so good that all this does not seem to be an error. To immediately avoid going with a scenario of Giannis, let’s say that the grizzly guys are interested in the choice and ready to exchange Jaren Jackson Jr. for that. Or maybe the Suns say that Devin Booker is available. The front office must listen. I do not expect them to exchange the choice, but I would not be against that if the good deal was available.
Who were the greatest winners and losses of the lottery?
Dubinski: Obviously, MAVs are the greatest winners (not that Nico Harrison deserves to be bombardic so easily, but that also makes him a winner), just like the Spurs. Flagg certainly did not seem enthusiastic about the MAV who won the choice, but he could do worse. (Stay in good shape!) The 76ers are also massive winners for having held their choice protected from the first 6, even if the advertiser made an error and created a drama. (And of course, we are all winners that their choice did not go to Thunder.) Then there are teams that simply cannot take a break in the lottery, like the Hornets and the Wizards, which makes them the greatest losers when they continue to wallow in purgatory.
Barrington: I cannot improve Marilyn’s response because she struck all the main points. Spurs are obviously huge winners, even if the best available player is not an ideal adjustment with their list. Having too many good players in certain positions is not the worst problem to have, because they will always be able to give them to everyone. I feel bad for jazz which could not have tank harder, but which has always ended up with the fifth choice, the worst possible for their lottery ratings.
Douglas: The biggest loser is the Draft NBA lottery herself. The system is so broken. This has only encouraged more teams to Tanker and have kept bad teams in hell, as they cannot get high level talents. The goal of the project is to balance the league. He failed to do it in his new form. This lottery, more than others, highlighted this problem. I guess MAVs are winners because they will push Cooper Flagg and remain relevant for the next 10 years, even if they do not deserve it.
Gomez: The credibility of the league with a certain part of its fans base was a large loser. The lottery is obviously not faked, but the Mavericks obtaining Flagg after exchanging a superstar at its peak for the Lakers reflect what happened when the Pelicans exchanged them Anthony Davis, then obtained the superior choice that would become Zion. Plot theorists now have many more ammunition.
Unfortunately for the Spurs, the Hawks were great winners because they were able to keep the 13th choice of the Kings, who would have obtained it if it had moved away, because it was the protected top-12. It is a great asset to exchange for immediate help or to continue building the talent base after picking up risacher last off -season.
