After starting the first two weeks of the new NBA year without star De'Aaron Fox, the San Antonio Spurs have been without both Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle for the last two-plus weeks. Throw in 2025 second overall pick Dylan Harper's absence for most of November and the Spurs have already lost perhaps their four best players (definitely their best three) to injury at various parts of this young season.
It sounds as though the Silver and Black will be without their back to back Rookies of the Year for a little while longer.
“The updates have been great in terms of they are progressing,” head coach Mitch Johnson said. “They're on the court, they are doing well. They're doing really well.”
The Spurs first year head coach stopped short of giving a timeline for their return though.
“I hope they continue to ramp up and then how do you feel tomorrow and continue that process that we always do. But, hopefully, those guys are going to be getting a little bit more alive and continuing to progress. They're doing very well.”
With their dynamic duo out, here are three takeaways from the Spurs time without two of their three leading scorers.
De'Aaron Fox has picked up the slack
Wembanyama hasn't played since November 14 vs. the Golden State Warriors. Castle went out at halftime of the next game. After scoring 24 in that loss to the Warriors, De'Aaron Fox put up 28 in the aforementioned victory against the Sacramento Kings two days later. It's a trend he's continued, scoring at least 24 points in San Antonio's six games since, with the exception of 15 in a victory at the Denver Nuggets and including 37 in a win at the Portland Trail Blazers.
An NBA All-Star in 2023, Fox is hitting the numbers the franchise envisioned when they traded for him in February. He looks very much like the player who's averaged at least 25 points per game just about every season since 2020.
The Spurs are getting surprise performances
In a 135-126 victory vs. the Atlanta Hawks, the Spurs got 12 points, six assists and five rebounds from David Jones Garcia. While those aren't earth shattering numbers in pro ball, they stuck out considering Jones Garcia is already a journeyman at just 24 years old. The organization's Summer League star took that performance to the NBA for a night.
When San Antonio clinched the toughest group in the NBA Cup, Julian Champagnie poured in 25 points to help beat the Nuggets in Denver and win Group C. The former St. John's standout averages 11 points per contest.
Though not surprising considering they've contributed over their NBA careers, Harrison Barnes and Keldon Johnson have put up several performances that have propelled the Spurs.
The Spurs are good
Including the game in which Castle went out at the intermission, Mitch Johnson's team is 5-2 without Wemby and Castle. That includes victories vs. the Nuggets in a winner-take-all Cup game, a Hawks team that had just lost a five game winning streak, and a Memphis Grizzlies squad that has since won five of the last six.
On December 10, the Spurs will play in the quarterfinals of the NBA Cup. In the meantime, they continue to rank among the top half of the Western Conference.
Not bad. Especially considering they have yet to field a complete team.
