San Antonio and Indiana Offseason guide

Congratulations to the San Antonio Spurs as they won quite literally the most important draft lottery since 2003 when Lebron was the consensus next generational player. I understand the word “generational” gets thrown around too much when talking about draft prospects, but Wembanyama is the definition of it. He’s 7’3” with a 7’9” wingspan, super mobile and fluid with his movements. He’s not one of these big guys that takes a while to get moving. In addition to his height and wingspan, he’s super flexible and can make any type of shot on the floor. Opponents had two approaches to defending him this year. They either put a larger guy on him to push him off the block or a smaller guy on him to try and keep him in front. Early on, he did struggle for his standards, but really hit his stride later on in the year. He even made a late push for Defensive Player of the Year. When larger guys, and by larger I mean centers and power forwards, were on him, he demonstrated he was capable of putting the ball on the floor. When teams tried to put a wing on him to slow him down on the perimeter, he was able to post them up and score very easily. It’s scary to think this is possibly the worst version of Wembanyama we're going to see; he averaged 21.4 ppg, 10.6 reb and 4 ast along with 3 blks. He was named Rookie of the Year, 1st team All- Defense and finished 2nd in Defensive Player of the Year. He has the potential to be the most dominant defensive player of all time with his size and athleticism. He amassed a ridiculous 88 steals and 254 blocks in 71 games this year. On top of the gaudy numbers, his presence on defense had opponents baffled by some of his blocks. On multiple occasions, opponents chose to bring the ball out from the paint when on a fastbreak because he was under the basket. He also blocked numerous three point attempts from opponents as well leading to easy fastbreak baskets for his team. There’s no doubt he’ll be a great player, the only question will be how long until he’s considered great. 

Outside of Wembanyama, the Spurs really struggled this year. Early on this year they had, at one point, lost 18 straight games. Devin Vassell had a terrific season for the Spurs as well. He’s clearly established himself as the long term answer at shooting guard for them. He shot above 37% from three the last two seasons and saw his 2pt FG percentage increase by 6 points this season. He's a dynamic player who has an effortless shooting motion. He’s someone who I believe could become a great level scorer to complement Wembanyama. Outside of these two, no one else had a great year. The Spurs had a comically terrible roster. They tried to play a larger sized lineup with Jeremy Sochan at point guard, but it was obvious he wasn’t the answer. Tre Jones eventually stepped into the starting position, but he’s not a long term answer to the spot in my opinion. I think he would be a great backup for the team in the future, but if they want to get better the position needs to be upgraded. The Spurs roster overall is very bad. There are not a lot of very good players outside of Wembanyama and Vassell. Maybe this is why there is so much promise for them in the future. Wembanyama had a phenomenal year along with Vassell. These two on the floor together had a +3.8 differential, very good for a team that won a total of 22 games this year. The Spurs still have young guys along with Vassell and Wembanyama. Sochan had a good rookie season last year, but had a sophomore slump some might say. I think his starting at point guard took his rhythm away from what he usually does. The main thing for him this offseason is to try and develop an outside shot. He’s a good defender as well. Keldon Johnson had an up and down year. Overall, his stats were not bad. He was a 15 ppg scorer along with shooting close to 35% from three, a number that’s improved from 2 years ago. However, he was not  thrilled once he was switched to coming off the bench after starting every game he’s played for the last two seasons. 

Ultimately, the Spurs offseason comes down to if they feel the need to accelerate the Wembanyama timeline. Do they feel if they make a move to get him a co-star they’ll get that much better in the highly competitive western conference? They have two picks in the top 10 of this year's draft; No. 4 and No. 8. They also own the 3rd most first round picks over the next 7 years and 18 second round picks in that same time span. The Spurs, along with this abundance of draft picks, have a ton of cap space. Outside of Vassell, no one on the team has a large contract. The overall roster needs shooting to surround Wembanyama, a complete revamp of their bench, a veteran presence, and more size on the wing and point guard positions. A name to keep an eye on for this team is Trae Young. Young would complement Wembanyama extremely well as a point guard.  However, he’s a very poor defender. The thought is Wembanyama could almost make up for the lack of defense on his own. The ultimate decision comes down to if the front office feels a need to make an immediate roster upgrade around Wembanyama now or in a few years. Regardless, they have a player in Wembanyama who could be an All-NBA player as early as next year.  

The Indiana Pacers made the conference finals in the East this past season. Yes, you just read that sentence. The Pacers were an extremely fun team to watch this year. They were the fastest playing team headed by Tyrese Haliburton at the point of attack. Haliburton had arguably a first team all NBA campaign unfolding until he injured his hamstring. After the injury he really struggled by his standards for the rest of the season. The team also acquired Pascal Siakam from the Toronto Raptors this past trade deadline. This gave Haliburton a co-star and helped improve their wing defense along with a shot creator on the offensive end. Siakam had a very good playoffs and helped keep games competitive with the Celtics when Haliburton missed the last two games of the series. Lots of fans and media were not willing to give the credit to Indiana for making the conference finals and understandably so. The Milwaukee Bucks were without Giannis and eventually Damian Lillard in the series. The Knicks had a slew of injuries that eventually piled up towards the end. The Pacers still won these series, but it was in 6 games against the Bucks and 7 games against the Knicks. Both series featured injuries to star players and important role players. However, the Pacers still made the conference finals and for their fans you can’t take that away from them. Eventually, they ran into the buzzsaw of the Boston Celtics, but then again everyone got dismantled by them this season. Indiana is still a relatively young team. I think the next step they can take is improved development from their point guard and leader, Tyrese Haliburton. 

Haliburton  achieved his rise to stardom  by having a fantastic In-Season Tournament that saw him and his team torch opponents with their offensive pace and speed. Haliburton had his signature moment when they closed out the semi-final game against the Bucks by  picking apart their defense down the stretch of the 4th quarter. Eventually, they fell to the Lakers in the finals. This was a warning sign for the rest of the league. The only issue I have with Halliburton was in the second half of the season. I  realize he rushed himself back from injury to make the 65 game limit needed for All-NBA. In the playoffs he was good, not great. For example, against the New York Knicks, he came out and looked very content and wasn’t aggressive in looking for his shot. This resulted in him only having 6 points in the loss. Now, in the second game, he came out and stunned the Kicks for 34 points and then 35 points in game 3. His overall demeanor was different and showed how much that affected the rest of the team throughout the series. In a league where you have to have a top 10 talent to win the big games, Haliburton needs to start entering those conversations if the Pacers want to justify the Siakam extension they did three years ago. The front office is showing their confidence in Haliburton and giving him the tools to become a better player. 

The Pacers offseason has already had its big move. They signed Pascal Siakam to a 189.5 million contract extension over 4 years. This gives the Pacers long term stability at the wing with a good defender and shot creator. Another decision they need to make is whether to resign Obi Toppin or to let a younger guy step up and take his place. The Pacers aren’t near the first or second apron of the salary cap, but do they feel Obi is needed for the team next year. Along with Toppin, TJ McConnell is in the last year of his  contract and I believe the Pacers need to re-sign him. McConnell had a wonderful postseason for the Pacers heading the second unit and playing tough defense overall against some of the better guards. McConnell's savvy in the lane to create shots for himself was very underrated for the Pacers offense. Along with his offense, the defense he played, toughness he showed, and the leadership he brought to the team were really valuable. He’s an important veteran presence on the floor for a relatively young team. Another piece to the offseason puzzle for the Pacers is that they have 3 second round picks in this year's draft. They own the 36th pick and they’ve done a good job of finding talent in that pick range with Ben Sheppard last year and Andrew Nembhard. Overall, finding a good player with this pick could help bolster a roster poised to make another deep run. Along with the 36th pick, they have the 49th and 50th pick. It’s likely they trade these picks considering bringing in three rookies to a team is a lot for them. They could potentially package these picks to try and create some more roster flexibility. They still have a lot of good young guys. Andrew Nembhard showed he can play well next to Haliburton. Ben Sheppard proved he can handle playoff minutes. Jarace Walker, their 8th pick last year, has some special physical tools that intrigue the front office. Maybe this team doesn’t get to the conference finals again next season, but they’re on the right track of continuing to improve their young and energized roster. 

Any news that takes place after this article is released will be recapped before the beginning of the season.