Last season, the Spurs achieved 22 wins and 60 losses, ranking second to last in the West, this offseason, the Spurs are a more successful team in the introduction of reinforcements, they first signed Chris Paul, and then got Harrison Barnes through a three-way trade, although Paul is old, but it is very suitable for a young team like the Spurs, you must know that what they lack most is the organization of guards, last season Popovich often let Sochan to control the ball, but unfortunately the effect is not ideal, Paul's joining will completely solve this problem, with the veteran driven, Wembanyama's stats will inevitably improve significantly, and the average game in the new season is expected to reach the level of 26+12.
Wembanyama has a historical-level talent, like him, who has a big man, can shoot, and can dribble like a guard, this kind of player has never appeared in the past, Wembanyama is very strong, averaging 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.2 steals and 3.6 blocks per game last season, with an average shooting rate of 46% per game, which is still the data played by Popovich's strict control of playing time, and now with Paul's passing, and then the playing time should be lifted, it is difficult for Wembanyama not to break out. Barnes is also a veteran now, having won a championship with the Warriors, has a lot of experience, and Barnes has played 82 games in two consecutive seasons.
It can be seen that Barnes is an iron man, although his improvement has been limited since entering the NBA, but as a starter, he is fully qualified offensive and defensive, which is exactly the type of Spurs need. In addition to Paul and Barnes, the Spurs have another person to look forward to, he is this year's 4th pick rookie Stephen Castle, since it can be second only to Shepard, it can be seen that Castle's talent is undoubted, his height is 2 meters, and his arm span is 2.06 meters, the draft report shows that Castle's strength and overall athleticism are at the top level in the same position of this rookie, that is to say, there is no better than him, and Castle also has excellent agility and balance, and is super fast.
In the summer league, Castle has played two games, against the Chinese men's basketball team, Castle got 18 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals. Against the Trail Blazers, Castle scored 22 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists, on the offensive end, Castle played at a good pace, not afraid of confrontation, he could finish with his left and right hands, and the scoring means basically came from impacting the interior or close-range jumpers, of course, Castle had shortcomings, that is, his three-point shooting was a little poor, 2 of 12 in the two summer league games, and he would shoot some outrageous three-point shots, but the Spurs don't have to worry, first of all, Castle was interviewed some time ago, and he said that he would work hard to train three-pointers in the offseason.
So he knows exactly where his attacking weaknesses are, and he is willing to correct them, which shows that Castle is extremely self-motivated. Secondly, Castle's draft template is Alexander, when he first entered the league, Alexander's three-point shot was actually not accurate, when Paul played a season in the Thunder, he helped Alexander grow a lot, look at now, Alexander is already one of the strongest scorers in the league, and stable, his three-point shot has been improving, so now think about it from another angle, Paul will of course help Castle improve, not expect him to reach Alexander's heights in the future, but at least to become a qualified scorer with no shortcomings.
As long as the average score per game can reach 20 points, then the Spurs will earn, so it looks like Paul's task next season is still quite heavy, to help Wembanyama continue to transform, but also to help Castle solve the shooting shortcomings, Paul himself is a very selfless player, maybe he is no longer chasing the championship goal, so leading the growth of young people will be something he is happy to do. On the defensive end, Castle is considered one of the best outside defenders in this rookie, he has enough height, strength and lateral speed to limit opponents, even as a defensive front player, Castle does not suffer.
Congratulations to the Spurs, this time they have chosen the treasure again, Wembanyama has added a strong helper, if Castle can develop the shot, he will be the type of offense and defense combined, after all, it is the 4th pick, and the talent and potential will definitely not be bad. The Spurs' lineup for the new season is not bad, with Wembanyama, Paul, Barnes, Vassell, Keldon, Castle and Sochan, etc., it is unrealistic to directly impact the playoffs, but it is not a big problem to get a play-off spot.