The San Antonio Spurs are already putting together a case to be recognized as the most improved team in the NBA in 2024-25.
Last season the San Antonio Spurs finished with a 22-60 record at a .268 win rate, finishing 14th in the Western Conference.
Remarkably this season at an early stage the Spurs are well on their way to surpassing that total, currently even possessing a winning record, sitting at 9-8 and .529 for the season.
This has the Spurs 11th in the West, opening up the possibility they could compete for play-in tournament berth later in the season.
One of the key reasons for San Antonio’s improvement has predictably been Victor Wembanyama making a predicted improvement on the promise shown in his rookie season.
Wembanyama scored 25 points to lead the Spurs to a big win over the Golden State Warriors, with 7 rebounds and 9 assists.
But the other reason is the impact of fourth overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, Stephon Castle.
Castle, 20, scored 19 points during the win over the Warriors, and he is establishing himself as an important player for the team, now a regular starter.
Speaking at a press conference after the game, Wembanyama picked out Stephon Castle for praise.
The Frenchman said: “I have blind faith in him. He plays like he’s much more experienced than he is.
“I don’t know where it comes from, but it’s really valuable to be able to give him that much confidence in the fourth quarter.”
Castle and Wembanyama’s defensive play restricted the Warriors to just 13 points in the fourth quarter, while scoring 33 themselves, with Golden State relinquishing their lead to fall to 12-4
Speaking at the post-game press conference, Castle described how the team ethic is key to San Antonio continuing to improve.
He said: “Just being in the locker room, I thought we’re pretty connected. We believe in our abilities to really make a run in the playoffs this year.
“Just going game by game, day by day, not trying to skip any steps, but I think we have a pretty connected locker room.”
If the Spurs continue to play like they did against the Warriors, and Castle keeps up his improvement, there is every chance they make the playoffs and cause some teams some problems.
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