The honeymoon period for the San Antonio Spurs and Victor Wembanyama will probably last all season. And it probably should. While the parallels to David Robinson in 1987 and Tim Duncan in '97 are undeniable, there's a stark difference between those franchise altering top overall draft picks and this year's.
No one expects these Spurs to contend right away. And so Wembanyama's grace period as a 19-year-old getting his first consistent taste of American basketball extends to the entire team as well. Fans can expect several, probably, many more games like the 123-83 loss at the Clippers on Sunday night.
It's all about the future
Without saying as much directly, the Spurs told fans they were looking long-term after drafting the French phenom. The details were in what they didn't do. San Antonio considered offering restricted free agent Austin Reaves a contract worth $21M per season, via HoopsHype. However, they decided against it out of realization that the Lakers would almost certainly match.
Additionally, the Spurs continued to stockpile draft picks for the coming years with deals that included the kind of player they could possibly flip for more draft picks, like Cameron Payne and Reggie Bullock. While both have since been released, it further cements San Antonio's short term outlook that rotational pieces who could aid a contender don't interest them.
The honeymoon suffers a rough night
While the Spurs front office is focused more on the future than the now, players are going to compete and fans are going to fan. Because the Spurs have a young core that does feature talent and because that core showed glimpses in playing sparingly together last year because well, you know….the locals are thinking this Silver and Black may surprise.
But though Devin Vassell could make an All-Star game or two before his career over, Jeremy Sochan could turn into a good versatile player key in in today's style of play and Keldon Johnson could serve as an important role piece for a very good team, none of them are there now. And, frankly, as great as it appears Victor Wembanyama is going to be, he's not there yet either.
Make no mistake, the Spurs are already much better because of their new 7'3′ wonder. But they're not at the point where they can give him the ball and let him go. Wemby's finding his favorite spots in the NBA and is still a ways away from figuring out how can utilize his talents and size to create for his teammates every time down.
Part of the learning curve will not only feature nights like Sunday's 40-point loss in Los Angeles, the reality of their progression demands it. Veteran teams like the Clippers will make Sochan uncomfortable. They'll make Vassell work. They'll turn Johnson into a one dimensional player. And they'll make Wembanyama look for others. The Spurs weren't able to make Kawhi Leonard and company pay. It'll be a while before they consistently make good teams do.
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