Remember when the San Antonio Spurs drafted Victor Wembanyama and the rest of the league hoped it'd take at least five years before he turned the team into one of the best in the league? Well, here he is in his third season, and the Spurs [sit third in the West](https://airalamo.com/spurs-halfway-forcing-nba-acknowledge-obvious-truth) with an 8-3 record. Between Wembanyama's play and San Antonio's hot start, the front office could already be thinking about making a splash before the trade deadline.
Last season, the Spurs traded for De'Aaron Fox, but unfortunately, not long after that, Wembanyama was ruled out for the rest of the season. Fox was sidelined for the remainder of the season in March with a finger injury.
The guard didn't make his regular-season debut until last week against the Pelicans, and before that, the Spurs had gone 6-2 without Fox. That also speaks to Wembanyama's dominance, but also to the contributions from top young guards Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper.
What will the Spurs do before the trade deadline?
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Even after trading for Fox in February, San Antonio still has the ammunition to go after another star-level player. It's still a little too early to know who will be on the market, but one player who has caught the attention of teams around the league is Lauri Markkanen. He's averaging 29.3 points per game on a Jazz team that isn't going anywhere, especially now that Walker Kessler is done for the season. His three-point shooting [would be a huge plus](https://airalamo.com/catastrophic-injury-update-sends-shockwaves-though-spurs-trade-deadline-plans), and he'd help take attention off Wembanyama.
Putting the thought of Markkanen in San Antonio aside, these are the kind of scenarios that the front office should, at the very least, be exploring right now. It's their job. There isn't pressure on the Spurs to do something, not like there was last year, but the position that San Antonio is in right now is a unique one. It's not every day that you have a 21-year-old on your team who is already one of the best players in the league.
The Spurs will continue to be a threat in the West with a healthy Wemby, and they have a real shot to finish in the top six. Most people may not have predicted that they'd be doing as well as they are now, but it's no fluke. Victor Wembanyama is the real deal, and he's only getting better.
You best believe that whatever San Antonio does before the trade deadline will be done with Wembanyama in mind.