His season-high 14 assists in Friday's 128-120 win over Philadelphia on Friday night were the most by a rookie this season.
TORONTO – With a minute left in Friday's 128-120 win over Philadelphia , Spurs rookie Stephon Castle had control of the ball, the offense and the game while stationed out on the perimeter. After calmly directing traffic with a pointed finger, Castle dashed inside the arc to draw the attention of all five defenders before he abruptly stopped and kicked the ball back out to the perimeter to Devin Vassell .
Vassell then quickly swung it to an open Harrison Barnes in the right corner for a 3-pointer that gave the Spurs a 124-120 lead with 53 seconds remaining. 'I didn't want to settle for anything, especially too early in the clock,' Castle said of how he patiently scanned the floor, studied the defense and positioned his teammates before initiating the action. SPURS AT RAPTORS: How to watch the game, notable stats, player news 'Just trying to help our team get the shot we wanted,' he added. The play underscored how in command Castle was by the end of a game in which he enjoyed his best performance as a playmaker. In addition to scoring 17 points, he finished with a season-best 14 assists – six better than his previous high – against just three turnovers to go along with five rebounds, three steals and one block in 35 minutes. It was the most assists by an NBA rookie this season and tied Chris Paul for the most by a Spur in 2024-25. It was also the most by a Spurs rookie since Alvin Robertson had 14 in 1984 and was five shy of matching the franchise rookie record of 19 set by Johnny Moore in 1981. 'It was amazing,' Spurs guard Blake Wesley said of Castle's performance. 'He's been doing this all year. Doesn't seem like he's a rookie.' READ MORE: Spurs partner is helping Elon Musk's DOGE cost-cutting crusade The Spurs enter Sunday's game against the Raptors having won four of their last six games, including two in a row for the first time since beating Denver on Jan. 3 after downing the Los Angeles Clippers on Jan. 31. 'We haven't done that in a long time,' acting Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said of the modest but satisfying winning streak, which has been accomplished without stars Victor Wembanyama and De'Aaron Fox . But there's another reason why the Spurs will begin this three-game trip that includes stops in Detroit and Cleveland on a high: Castle has all but won the race for Rookie of the Year after hiking his season averages to 14.0 points and 3.7 assists. 'Has it been a question?' said Jeremy Sochan, who scored a season-high 23 points and collected nine rebounds. “There’s no one out there on the ladder or even in his class that should get it,' the forward added. 'I think it’s his, for sure.” As the season winds down, Castle is playing the best basketball of his life, averaging 20.5 points, 4.8 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 1.2 steals over the last 13 games. What he did against Philadelphia highlighted his impressive skill set and potential as the game continues to slow down for him. “It was just fun to play, just playing free,” Castle, 20, said. “I feel like that just came from really learning my teammates all season, just really putting it all together.” And he's only going to get better as a playmaker as he becomes more familiar with how teams are trying to defend him, Johnson said. 'He'll be a dynamic force to be reckoned with because he has the passing ability and the vision,' Johnson said. Castle's teammates agreed with the coach. 'It's amazing how much attention he brings when he's driving,' Sochan said. 'He's collecting so many other players with him, so it's for us to be in the right places for him to make the pass and capitalize on that.' Castle's ability to creatively dash through the paint for inside buckets is on every scouting report now, which means as defenses collapse on him, he will have plenty of opportunities to kick the ball out for open shots like he did on the sequence that led to Barnes' crucial 3. 'From the beginning of the season to now, I feel like the shifts I've seen when I'm on the ball are a lot heavier,' Castle said. 'I feel like that's a luxury for me to be able to get my teammate a shot, or to create for my teammate. Doing that in the first three quarters just opens up the court late in the game when we need a bucket.' Indeed, Castle was at his best in the fourth quarter, playing every minute of the frame to finish with nine points on 4 for 7 and four assists. The Spurs outscored injury-depleted Philadelphia 37-25 after the Sixers won the third, 43-27. 'I felt like just me distributing the ball early kind of opened the court late game,' Castle said. 'We started to get what we want late in the fourth.' With Castle in charge, the Spurs finished with an 11-3 run in the final 3:31 after trailing by eight midway through the period. 'He was just controlling the game with his pace, seeing the floor, seeing everybody and we preached good-to-great ,' Vassell said. In a team-high 37 minutes, Vassell finished with 20 points powered by 4-of-8 accuracy from 3-point range, seven assists, five rebounds and three steals. Paul, who hit a season 6 shots on 7 attempts from deep, and Keldon Johnson each finished with 18 points. But Castle orchestrating all of it stood out the most. His 14 assists led to 36 points. All told, with his 17 points scored, he accounted for 41.4% of the team's scoring. 'When he plays free and plays confident, aggressive, there's nobody that's going to stop him,' Vassell said. 'He just keeps oozing with confidence and he's helping all of us out on the floor too. 'So, I'm just excited. I'm excited to see how we finish off this year. And I'm excited to see where this group can go.'
Philadelphia Raptors NBA Sixers Los Angeles Clippers Stephon Castle Devin Vassell Mitch Johnson Blake Wesley Jeremy Sochan Chris Paul Alvin Robertson Rookie Of The Year Harrison Barnes Victor Wembanyama Johnny Moore Elon Musk Keldon Johnson Philadelphia TORONTO Detroit Cleveland Denver Barnes De'aaron Fox DOGE Castle
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