Following one of the San Antonio Spurs' final preseason practices, Gregg Popovich provided some encouraging news regarding Devin Vassell, the player who may very well be his second best player right now — even with Chris Paul and Harrison Barnes now in the mix.

“No contact yet, but we're still hopeful that at the beginning of November sometime he'll be with us,” the Hall of Fame coach said about his 24-year-old swing man.

“He actually scripted today, all the plays and that kind of thing. He went up and down.”

Vassell's potential return matches an initial timeline given by the team when they announced their second leading scorer would be out.

Devin Vassell not expected to miss much of regular season

San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) along with guards Chris Paul (3) and Devin Vassell (24) sit out the preseason game against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Frost Bank Center.
Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

As the result of a June 26 surgery on his right foot, the Spurs announced that Vassell was expected to miss the start of the regular season days before the start of training camp.

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On the team's Media Day, held the day before their first formal practice, the former Florida State star confirmed that he'd be reevaluated on November 1st.

“Right now, I'm on the court, moving around really good, doing everything. I'm hoping to be back as soon as possible.”

Out because of the procedure meant to fix a stress reaction of the third metatarsal head on his right foot, Vassell also missed the final eight games of last year's regular season with the ailment. Though the team said in late September that Vassell was participating in non-contact basketball activities, Spurs fans weren't wrong in fearing that their second leading scorer might be out longer. Especially considering the franchise's famously cautious approach regarding injuries.

But if Popovich's potential projection comes to fruition, Vassell could miss only five games. After facing the Dallas Mavericks to start the new year on October 24, the Spurs host the Houston Rockets in back to back games on October 26 and 28 before going back on the road for contests against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Utah Jazz on October 30 and 31. San Antonio's first game after November 1 comes the next day at the Frost Bank Center vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves.

About to enter his fifth NBA season, Vassell has increased his scoring average every year since he entered the league. He led the Silver and Black in scoring through the first couple of months last year before finishing second behind just Victor Wembanyama with 19.5 points per outing through a career high 68 games.