Picture San Antonio trading away a 20-year-old Stephon Castle—the reigning Rookie of the Year—for a 40-year-old LeBron James who may retire after this season. That doesn't sound like a very Spurs-like move, does it? It's so outside of anything this front office has ever done that it probably shouldn't even be out there. Unfortunately, it is.
Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report watched Victor Wembanyama (21 years old) go ballistic against the Mavericks in the first game of the season [and had a revelation.](https://bleacherreport.com/articles/25263078-1-trade-target-every-nba-team-season) Vic is ready to win now, so Brian Wright should do everything in his power to win now. The idea is only half right. Vic is ready to win now, but that doesn't mean you sabotage a future so bright you need Category 4 sunglasses to glance at it.
Stephon Castle is already proving himself to be a perfect fit for Wemby
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Area 51 was a revelation in game one. I know it was easy to miss what the herky-jerky sophomore guard did because Vic was busy blocking out the sun, but he was awesome. Castle dropped 22 points on 8-12 FG, added seven rebounds, and six assists. On top of that, he locked up Cooper Flagg and grabbed two steals on top of just being flat-out disruptive all night.
He was a star and the [second-best player on a court](https://airalamo.com/underrated-spurs-takeaways-buried-beneath-wembanyama-monstrous-return) that had Anthony Davis on it. Steph also continued his trend of getting to the free-throw line—a skill it takes most stars years to learn—shooting 10 free throws. Now, he only made five of them, but with the strides we've already seen him take, it would be a bad bet to gamble that he won't improve that area of his game with more time.
LeBron is one of the greatest players to ever step foot on the hardwood. Nobody can take that away from him. But he's going to be 41 before 2025 is through. James isn't even on the court right now because Father Time is catching up with him, and he's already been playing around with the idea of retirement at the end of the upcoming season. He has two years left max.
The former Cleveland Cavalier used to be an ironman. He never got injured. It was almost supernatural. Now, he's getting hurt, and the timetable is shifting on his return. When Bron's injury was first announced, he was only supposed to miss the preseason due to a glute injury. Next thing you know, the reports changed, and he's being ruled out until mid-November because of a nerve issue.
Suggesting that the Spurs should trade away a potential star in his second year for one year, possibly two years, of an old and compromised LeBron is just unbelievably... We'll call it misguided.