The Spurs have the No. 2 overall pick in the 2025 draft. If they were on the clock right now and Cooper Flagg was gone, who’d you pick?
Marilyn Dubinski: It will likely depend on where the Spurs feel they need the most help not just now, but in future seasons as well. Dylan Harper seems to be the consensus no. 2 after Flagg, and I’d be all over that pick if they hadn’t traded for Fox, but will he be redundant with Fox and Castle? The same could be said of VJ Edgecombe. Then again, they also need a backup PG. They also desperately need size, but there is a lack of big men projected to go that high. Ace Bailey seems like the most likely candidate that could provide that, although he’s a bit of a wildcard.
Mark Barrington: I think if they keep the pick, they have to go with Harper, who is the best available, and although the fit isn’t ideal, point guards take time to develop, and having him coming off the bench as he adapts to the NBA game wouldn’t be bad. If he develops into a star in two or three years, the Spurs could trade away one of their point guards for additional players at a position of need or draft capital. I wouldn’t be opposed to trading down a pick or two to grab Ace Bailey or Edgecombe, but only if the Spurs can pick up another rotation player in the deal on a reasonable contract.
Jacob Douglas: Drafting for fit is for teams that are already contending for championships. The Spurs don’t have that luxury. Go get the best player available. That’s Harper. Much like Stephon Castle, he has the positional size to play on and off the ball. With Castle’s defensive versatility, there is a world where you could even play the three of them together, with Castle playing at the wing. Harper is going to be a walking bucket in the NBA with his combination of size, strength, footwork, and finishing ability. If the jump shot continues to improve, we could be talking about a multi-time All-NBA caliber player.
Jesus Gomez: I haven’t done much research yet about the prospects, but what I’ve seen from Harper has been impressive, and the experts are excited about his potential, so I’ll go with him. Defensively, Castle can guard wings, so there should be no big issue. Offensively, the lack of shooting while playing two of Fox, Castle and Harper could be tricky, but having several guys who can get to the paint using speed or strength could be good overall. I wouldn’t mind trading down a couple of spots to pick up a young veteran, but I’d be happy with Harper.
Should the Spurs trade the No. 2 overall pick for immediate help for Victor Wembanyama, or would that be rushing the rebuild?
Dubinski: It depends on what they’re getting in return. The pick would definitely not be worth an aging player like Kevin Durant, but I also have my hesitations about trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo because even with the 2nd overall pick, the Spurs would still have to give away several young core pieces while still keeping in mind that they have to pay Fox now and Wemby in two years. If Giannis were essentially a rental, he wouldn’t be worth that much. The Spurs are at a point that they can move into win-now mode if they want, but I wouldn’t complain if they kept the pick and didn’t jump the gun too much.
Barrington: I don’t see how that works with the NBA salary structure, because in order to pick up an established star, you need to also send out players with enough salary to make the cap math work out. The Spurs have already shed their bad contracts over the last couple of years. You would not want to send out several good players and the #2 draft pick unless you got a superstar player in return. The only ‘available’ player who fits that criteria would be Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is a top 3 talent in the league. I’d be open to the Spurs talking a run at acquiring him, but not at the expense of gutting the team’s depth and future ability to improve.
Douglas: Do you want to be the Oklahoma City Thunder or the New Orleans Pelicans? The Thunder built assets and look like an NBA champion. New Orleans cashed in its assets twice, first with Anthony Davis and again with Zion Williamson to push for titles, but it didn’t work. Consistently, the teams that play it patiently and stack assets have the longest runway to compete for championships. There is no guarantee Antetokounmpo brings San Antonio a championship in the next five years, and he significantly limits what they can do around Fox, Wemby, and himself. Pick the best young talent, remain agile, and get better. Harper, the fourteenth pick, and any free agent acquisitions should make the Spurs a playoff team next year.
Gomez: They have to at least entertain the idea. If Wemby is fully healthy, and there have been no updates that indicate otherwise, he’s so good already that going all in doesn’t seem like a mistake. To avoid immediately going with a Giannis scenario, let’s say the Grizzlies are interested in the pick and willing to trade Jaren Jackson Jr. for it. Or maybe the Suns say Devin Booker is available. The front office has to listen. I don’t expect them to trade the pick, but I wouldn’t be against it if the right deal were available.
Who were the biggest winners and losers of the lottery?
Dubinski: Obviously the Mavs are the biggest winners (not that Nico Harrison deserves to be bailed out so easily, but that makes him a winner as well), as are the Spurs. Flagg certainly didn’t seem excited about the Mavs winning the pick, but he could do worse. (Just stay in shape!) The 76ers are also massive winners for keeping their top-6 protected pick, even though the announcer erred and created some drama. (And of course, we’re all winners that their pick didn’t go to the Thunder.) Then there are some teams that just can’t catch a break in the lottery, like the Hornets and Wizards, making them the biggest losers as they continue to wallow in purgatory.
Barrington: I can’t improve on Marilyn’s answer, as she hit all of the main points. The Spurs are obviously huge winners, even though the best player available isn’t an ideal fit with their roster. Having too many good players at certain positions isn’t the worst problem to have, because they will still be able to give all of them playing time. I feel bad for the Jazz who couldn’t have tanked any harder, but still ended up with the fifth pick, the worst possible for their lottery odds.
Douglas: The biggest loser is the NBA Draft Lottery itself. The system is so broken. It’s only encouraged more teams to tank, and kept bad teams in bottom-feeding hell because they can’t secure top-tier talent. The draft’s purpose is to balance the league. It has failed to do that in its new form. This lottery, more than others, put a spotlight on that problem. I guess the Mavs are winners because they’ll draft Cooper Flagg and remain relevant for the next 10 years, even if they don’t deserve it.
Gomez: The league’s credibility with a certain part of its fan base was a big loser. The lottery is obviously not rigged, but the Mavericks getting Flagg after trading a superstar in his prime to the Lakers mirrors what happened when the Pelicans traded them Anthony Davis and then got the top pick that would become Zion. The conspiracy theorists have a lot more ammo now.
Unfortunately for the Spurs, the Hawks were big winners, since they got to keep the 13th pick from the Kings, who would have gotten it if it had moved up, as it was top-12 protected. That’s a nice asset to trade for immediate help or to continue to build the talent base after picking up Risacher last offseason.