There’s no denying that it was a brutal week for San Antonio Spurs fans.
A weird showing in NBA All-Star Weekend—where Spurs players Chris Paul and Victor Wembanyama were disqualified from the Skills Challenge—was just about forgotten because of the bad news that followed.
On Thursday, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that Wembanyama, the second-year sensation from France, has been ruled out for the year due to blood clots in his shoulder.
It’s obviously very scary when blood clots come into play for athletes. Everyone in the NBA world remembers when Chris Bosh was diagnosed with this and had to step away from the sport, and there have been a few other examples since.
After a solid rookie year, Wembanyama was in line to win his first of many Defensive Player of the Year awards, but he will now be ineligible. His absence will also hurt the Spurs on both sides of the ball.
Adding insult to injury, legendary coach Gregg Popovich will remain sidelined for the rest of the season while he recovers from a stroke suffered in November. His return to the NBA is unknown.
Within two days, Spurs Nation was handed a whirlwind of bad news. It puts the Spurs in a weird spot. Before the NBA trade deadline, they made a huge splash by trading for De’Aaron Fox from the Sacramento Kings, a trade that was actually working seamlessly before all of this bad news.
That trade will not mean much for the remainder of this season. The Spurs are the No. 12 seed, and it’s hard to see them rallying much higher than that in a loaded Western Conference without their best player.
Mitch Johnson has done a nice job treading water for the Spurs as the interim head coach. But if Popovich’s future remains uncertain, San Antonio could be forced to look toward the future.
Next season will be a pivotal Year 3 for Wembanyama’s development and recovery from this blood clot scare. The Spurs already made a big splash by acquiring Fox via trade, and while that was not quite an “all-in” move, there will be expectations for them to at least be a playoff team next season.
At 24-30, their best bet is probably to look forward to next season. Hell, maybe try to shut down Fox for a few games and jockey for NBA Draft lottery positioning. Remember, the Spurs own the Atlanta Hawks’ pick as well from the Dejounte Murray trade, so there’s an avenue for them to add even more young talent this offseason.
It’s not all bad news for San Antonio. They have a nice young core—they just need to make sure they capitalize on it. Popovich and Wembanyama have reportedly been in close communication after the big man’s diagnosis, which will bring a slight smile to the faces of NBA fans everywhere.
