SAN ANTONIO — The San Antonio Spurs (22-28) will visit the Washington Wizards (9-43) Monday night for Game 5 of the 2025 Rodeo Road Trip, an extended stretch of away games in which the Spurs are 1-3 so far.
Entering Monday’s action, the Silver & Blac are three games out of a spot in the Play-In Tournament and looking up at Phoenix and Golden State. Having lost 12 of their last 16 games – including back-to-back one-point heartbreakers – the Spurs are hunting for a reversal of momentum against a lowly Wizards team that sports the worst record in the NBA.
GAME REWIND
The Spurs are coming off a 112-111 road loss to the Magic, a game that saw them blow a double-digit lead before faltering to Orlando down the stretch.
Rookie Stephon Castle finished with 15 points and three rebounds in the loss. De’Aaron Fox added nine points and nine assists. Victor Wembanyama finished with 18 points and nine rebounds; Keldon Johnson chipped in 10 points; Harrison Barnes tallied 21 points; and Chris Paul had six points and five assists.
Devin Vassell recorded a team-high 25 points and two rebounds, and Jeremy Sochan added seven points and two rebounds.
The team was led by Mitch Johnson, who continues to assume head coaching duties in Gregg Popovich’s absence. Charles Bassey also didn’t suit up due to injury.
“It comes down to the details. We had a couple of possessions… multiple rebound possessions that we gave up. I think we had two free throw block out rebounds that we gave up,” said Barnes. “Those are just examples, but I think it is little things like that. Obviously, you can always nitpick last possessions and over-analyze those but there are so many possessions throughout the game and fundamental things that we are not doing, that in game 50 we should be doing.”
INJURY REPORT
Center Charles Bassey has been ruled out as he continues to deal with a sprained knee. The Spurs, who had been thin at the position since trading away Zach Collins in the Fox deal, bolstered their depth by signing 32-year-old center Bismack Biyombo to a 10-day contract over the weekend.
Alex Sarr, the second overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft and Washington’s leading shot-blocker, will be out Monday due to an ankle sprain. He’s averaging 11.5 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 41 games this season.
LOCKED ON SPURS PREVIEWS SPURS-WIZARDS
THE UNIFORMS
The Spurs will be in their Association Edition jerseys Monday.
FIVE THINGS TO WATCH
1. The Wizards have lost five straight games at home.
2. The Wizards are 2-21 versus West teams this season.
3. The Wizards are averaging 116.6 points per game in February, compared to 113 for San Antonio. The Spurs are also giving up more points this month: 117.4 compared to 115.6 for Washington.
4. The Spurs have been out-rebounded in three straight games.
5. The Spurs are 3-10 on the road when trailing at halftime.