What if I told you that the San Antonio Spurs are title contenders because they are the best team in the Eastern Conference? Yes. You read that right. I know that they play in the West, but we're conducting a thought experiment on how good this team actually is right now and what their reality is despite that.
Sam Vecenie and Bryce Simon broached the subject on a recent Game Theory Podcast episode, agreeing that the Spurs would sit atop the standings on that side of them, and I'm inclined to agree with them. Have you seen the EC standings? Their bad teams are absolutely awful because they're all tanking for the chance at a high lottery pick in one of the deepest, most talented drafts in recent history.
The one part that I'm not sure about yet is where they stand in the West. Vecenie believes they are the fifth-best team. I get that two of the last three MVPs are in Denver and OKC. I get that Luka Doncic is averaging 35 points per game. However, there's still too much that we don't know about the Silver and Black.
The NBA hasn't seen the best the Spurs have to offer
If you look across the NBA, injuries have taken the league by storm. The numbers are up significantly, and I don't know if it's a flat-out uptick in injuries or an increased level of caution. What it is is undeniable, though. In San Antonio's case, they haven't played a single game that wasn't compromised by a sidelined rotational player.
Granted, most of their core players are young, but they're all very talented. They need time on the court together to gel. This is a team that was playing unbelievably well until the Golden State Warriors walked into their building and knocked them off twice in a row. The games were close and hard-fought, but they shouldn't have lost both games, strictly based on how the two teams were performing heading in.
The Warriors were able to overcome the youthful exuberance of the Spurs because of their familiarity and veteran leadership. Fox had just returned from injury. So, he was trying to work off some rust and start building that chemistry. Now that Vic is out again, the star duo has only played nine total games together, further slowing down their ability to find a flow together.
Hopefully, Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper are back on the floor by the time Wemby returns. If everyone can stay healthy for a while, they can actually start to figure out how good they are. Nobody knows yet, and they're sitting at the fifth seed in the West. There could be another gear to unlock. They just have to get and stay healthy.