In Stephon Castle and Victor Wembanyama, the Spurs have each of the league’s past two Rookie of the Year winners. The duo headlines a core that now features deadline acquisition De’Aaron Fox and the No. 2 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, Dylan Harper.
San Antonio’s lottery luck to move up to take Harper should not be understated. The 19-year-old guard is far and away the second-best prospect in this class and stands to make an immediate impact at the NBA level.
📲 Follow The Sporting News on WhatsApp
While there was no doubt Harper would go second overall, his standing as a lead guard will result in some positional overlap with Castle and Fox, though the abundance of talent is a good problem to have.
Here is an updated look at San Antonio’s roster with Harper before the franchise adds the 14th overall pick in this year’s draft, as well.
Here is an updated look at the Spurs roster with Harper. The players on the list below are each under contract for the 2025-26 season, though there are some returning players San Antonio can reach agreements with during free agency.
MORE NBA DRAFT NEWS:
Spurs projected starting five
Here’s what San Antonio’s starting unit could look like when the 2025-26 regular season opens up.
Note that the starting unit does not feature Harper, who would instead slide into a position to lead San Antonio’s bench. As a ball-dominant lead guard, manning the second unit could be a great way for Harper to get a feel for things at the NBA level without the pressure of a starting position.
Harper gets to learn under the tutelage of Fox and be an understudy of Castle, who set the blueprint with his Rookie of the Year campaign in 2024-25.
The center of the Spurs’ system is Wembanyama, and his quick ascension into superstardom means the franchise’s title window could be opened within the next two seasons. To win, they need as much talent as possible.
Let the Thunder’s title run be a recent example of selecting the best player available and figuring out the positional overlap with time. San Antonio has a guard-heavy roster with Castle, Fox, Harper, and a pair of wings in Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell.
The Spurs have the flexibility to mix and match lineups to figure out what works best, and in the bigger picture, can part ways with more expendable players to address different needs.
MORE NBA DRAFT NEWS:
