Last Week:14↑
2023-24 record: 22-60
OffRtg: 109.3 (26) DefRtg: 115.6 (21) NetRtg: -6.4 (25) Pace: 101.8 (3)
Key addition(s): Harrison Barnes, Chris Paul, Stephon Castle
Key departure(s): N/A
Three numbers to know:
The Spurs were the league’s most improved team after the All-Star break, both in regard to winning percentage (11-16 vs. 11-44 before the break) and point differential per 100 possessions (minus-1.9 vs. minus-8.5).
They were one of two teams – Charlotte was the other – to rank in the bottom 10 in each of the four factors on offense.
They outscored their opponents by 9.0 points per 100 possessions in 806 total minutes with Tyus Jones, Devin Vassell and Victor Wembanyama on the floor together.
Key question: How real were those on-court numbers?
That last bullet point suggests that if you put some competent players around Wembanyama, the Spurs are awesome. And they’ll have a couple of more competent players on the roster this season. But some of that positive data was built up against other bad teams; Wembanyama was a plus-41 in just 53 minutes over two games against Portland, for example. And the Spurs were outscored by 5.7 points per 100 possessions in his 1,509 minutes against the 19 teams that finished at or above 500.
The 20-year-old is absolutely an impact player, but it’s a long way from 22-60 (and ranking in the bottom 10 on both ends of the floor) to beating good teams and contending for a playoff spot. The Spurs will be better this season, but how much better?
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