The Spurs considered the return a good value for the No. 8 pick and then added Juan Núñez and Harrison Ingram in the second round of the 2024 NBA draft.
Around 8 p.m. Wednesday night, NBA commissioner Adam Silver stepped to the draft-night podium at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn and told a lie. Or at best an incomplete truth. “With the eighth pick in the 2024 NBA draft,” Silver announced, “the San Antonio Spurs select Rob Dillingham from the University of Kentucky.
” It is true the Spurs technically made that pick. However, in a prearranged deal the league could not announce until it was formally approved hours later, the Spurs had agreed to a trade with Minnesota and were selecting Dillingham on the Timberwolves’ behalf. News of the deal eventually trickled out, befuddling a crowd that had gathered outside the Spurs’ headquarters for a team-thrown draft party. A day later, Spurs general manager Brian Wright acknowledged the obvious: The Spurs made the swap because they believed the assets Minnesota was offering — an unprotected first-round pick in 2031 and a pick swap opportunity in 2030 — were good value for a pick he had no intention of using this year. RELATED: Victor Wembanyama applauds Spurs' decision to draft Stephon Castle Wright also acknowledged something else about the player who will eventually be selected with that 2031 first-rounder. “Obviously,” Wright said Thursday, “that’s some 11-year-old right now.” Over the next seven years, the Spurs will have myriad options when it comes to the pick they took from the Timberwolves. Among them, they can hire someone to begin scouting the country’s elementary schools. Or they can hold onto the pick and, eventually, use it as in package with others they have stockpiled to trade it for someone older, better and — hopefully — a difference-maker in the building project around star centerpiece Victor Wembanyama. If all goes to plan, the Spurs will likely not own the that 2031 pick by the turn of the decade. Always close to the vest, Wright could not guarantee such a huge move will happen this summer. SPURS NATION NEWSLETTER: The best Spurs coverage in the Alamo City, delivered to your inbox “We’ll kind of see,” Wright said. “You work through these things in stages and the first stage was getting through the draft. You’re always looking for opportunities to improve the team. We’ll be aggressive but also strategic and see what unfolds.” The cornerstone of the 2024 draft class is Connecticut guard Stephon Castle, a 6-foot-6 lockdown defender the Spurs hope will be their long-term answer in the backcourt. The Spurs added a pair of second-round picks Thursday, accepting cash from Indiana to move one spot down and select Spanish point guard Juan Núñez at No. 36 before nabbing North Carolina forward Harrison Ingram at No. 48. It is unclear whether Núñez, who is under contract this season overseas and will be playing with the Spanish national team in the summer Olympics in Paris, will be considered for this year’s roster. Wright said that was “TBD.” Whenever Núñez does matriculate to the NBA — whether this year or beyond — it will not be difficult to imagine him throwing easy-to-dunk passes to Wembanyama someday. One NBA analyst called Núñez the most creative passer in this year’s draft. The 20-year-old has already played in high-level games overseas, starring for the team that won the German League championship last season. “He’s probably the best pick-and-roll player in the draft as a passer and creator,” Wright said. “He's got moxie. He's competitive. He's a winner, and he's done it on the highest stage.” Ingram, meanwhile, is expected to join Castle on the Spurs’ summer league team next month and could be a candidate for a two-way contract in the fall. Wright said Ingram’s best skill is his versatility. Beginning his college career at Stanford, the 6-foot-6 Ingram operated in a point-forward type of role. After transferring to North Carolina, Ingram seamlessly transitioned into a 3-and-D role. “It's not easy to transition your game the way that he did,” Wright said. READ MORE: After adding 'perfect Spur,' context tells more about team's plan As Thursday dawned, questions remained about the first-round pick the Spurs did not make the night before. The trade with Minnesota netted the Spurs roughly an extra $7 million in salary cap space to use this summer, up to $26 million. The extra pick gave the Spurs 11 first-rounders between now and 2031 to bundle in a trade. It was not an easy decision, Wright said. “Those decisions are always difficult because you do all the work on the draft, and there's definitely players that you like,” Wright said. “But you have to weigh the calculus on what's best for the future. And we felt like the package that we got was one that made sense to move off of the eight pick for.” This much is clear: The Spurs are not finished building out their 2024-25 roster. They will enter the July free agency period with three open roster spots — and more depending on the fates of players with contracts not fully guaranteed, like Devonte’ Graham, Julian Champagnie and Charles Bassey. “We want to build something that's sustainable,” Wright said. “You’ve got to build it brick by brick. All the decisions that we made to this point have kind have been under that premise.” That includes Wednesday night, when Silver took the podium in New York and lied. And a crowd watching back in San Antonio cheered out of turn. Wright and the Spurs will hope this year’s draft is best known for Castle, and perhaps an unexpected second-rounder or two pulled out of thin air. And if the 2024 draft eventually becomes remembered for providing a future pick that helps the Spurs make another leap forward? That won’t be a bad consolation prize, even if it is a current 11-year-old.
NBA University Of Kentucky Timberwolves German League Stanford Brian Wright Harrison Ingram Juan Núñez Adam Silver Stephon Castle Rob Dillingham Stephon Castle Wright Devonte Julian Champagnie Charles Bassey Graham North Carolina Minnesota Barclays Center Spain Brooklyn Spanish Dillingham Connecticut Indiana Alamo City Paris Spurs 11 San Antonio New York Olympics Victor Wembanyama Núñez Castle
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