The San Antonio Spurs are one of three undefeated teams left and are on a franchise-best opening five-game win streak. They are missing key rotation players such as All-Star De’Aaron Fox, plus backup big men Kelly Olynyk and Luke Kornet. Still, it’s irresistible to think about what the margin of victory could be if the team had more of its horsepower.
The Spurs are winning by an average of 14.4 points, the highest differential in the NBA, although, two victories have come against two still-winless — the Brooklyn Nets and New Orleans Pelicans. The highest quality opponent so far has been the Miami Heat (3-2).
Keep in mind that the Spurs are fourth-slowest in pace but number one in fastbreak points. This means they selectively strike in the open court and are sharp at exposing weak transition defense instead of initiating offense early. The Heat are first and second in both those categories, but the Spurs were superior in each area on Thursday in a six-point win.
With Fox, they’d likely be playing quicker because of his dynamic abilities in space, but the team has operated at such a high level, showing they can get by without him. There’s a bit of a trade-off with him out, too: Castle is a superior defender, and hounding rivals on the perimeter is a big reason they have the second-rated defensive rating.
Hypothetically, if Fox were ready for the opener in Dallas, it doesn’t mean they would have waxed the Wild Horses harder than 33 points. Why? Stephon Castle may be averaging 5.4 turnovers, with 5.4 assists but the role isn’t too big for him because he is feasting at the rim, logging 81 percent when 36.2 percent of attempts come from there. He screens for Wemby, creating inverted sets and has been his best lob passer early on as well.
Devin Vassell is fifth in the NBA in fastbreak point average (5.6) and making 40.5 percent of 3-point shots on the highest volume on the team (8.4). Dylan Harper has an exceptional first step and can put defenders on his back hip easily. It always seems like he’s in control, and now is a good time to mention that he’s third in rookie scoring at 14.4 points on 52.7 effective field goal percentage with a 2.3 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Furthermore, with Fox being a volume scorer, they could still be averaging the highest-point differential, but it would eat away at some of the opportunities the younger perimeter players are getting. They’d be blowing teams out, but not by a more significant margin than now and that’s not an indictment on Fox. It means the team has a surplus of good players, and not all of them will be able to shine every game.
One big area Fox would help in is ball security, especially in the win against the Raptors, in which the Spurs had 21. He has a career 2.26 assist-to-turnover ratio and has more experience in tight, late-game situations as a veteran. Through five outings, the Spurs have been a middle-of-the-pack team in avoiding turnovers, and that’s not good enough.
Fox’s gravity on the attack would also loosen things up for others. Keep in mind that Wembanyama is only taking 2.8 catch-and-shoot attempts this year. He’s been terrific, and highlighting those low attempts may sound like nitpicking but it isn’t. There is an opportunity down the line for Wemby to take some easier shots in a game supplied by Fox.
Aside from Fox, let’s not forget Kornet, who has missed three games, and Olynyk, who has been absent all. They’ll eventually be back, but their time off has ensured that Bismack Biyombo gets the non-Wembanyama minutes with a bit of Harrison Barnes at the five. The backup big man role is one of the most important on the team because opponents attack the body more with Wemby out, and so far, there hasn’t been much of a security blanket in those spurts because of the injuries.
With Kornet and/or Olynyk back, the Spurs could add a bit of extra cushioning to their margin of victory. They can get buckets and are solid screeners for their teammates, which means they will get open. Before Kornet hurt his ankle, the Spurs flashed screen rolls with him and Wembanyama against the Pelicans in their brief time sharing the floor, and it worked. Repeated actions between the two can put defenses in a scramble.
What is going on is not a fluke. Borrowing a line from Nucky Thompson in Boardwalk Empire, “The pups have grown fangs,” and the Spurs are back.
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