The Spurs aren’t returning to the playoffs by accident. These were the front office’s key moves and acquisitions.

SAN ANTONIO — The San Antonio Spurs are heading to the playoffs for the first time since 2019, and many believe they have what it takes to win it all their first season back in the dance.

Part of that hope stems from regular-season success that even the most optimistic of fans likely didn’t see coming: a 62-20 finish to clinch the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference after winning just 34 games last year. 

Teams don’t go from missing the playoffs entirely one season to winning 60 games the next merely by luck. It requires not just great basketball players, but great basketball minds in the front office that puts the team together, including Spurs great Gregg Popovich.

You can throw Victor Wembanyama on the court all you want, but if the surrounding cast doesn’t compliment his skills, it’s back to the lottery year after year.

Here are some of the savviest decisions the Spurs have made during the rebuild to help them break their six-year playoff drought with the second-best regular season record in the league. 

The 2019-20 season was the first time the Spurs didn’t make the playoffs in an NBA-record 22 years. 

This team, led by DeMar DeRozan and LaMarcus Aldridge, finished the year 32-39 in a shortened season postponed due to COVID-19.

For the first time in more than two decades, the Spurs were a lottery team and ultimately landed the No. 11 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. That represented their highest selection in the draft since taking Tim Duncan No. 1 overall in 1997.

So what did they do with it? San Antonio grabbed Florida State forward Devin Vassell over players like Iowa State’s Tyrese Haliburton and Kentucky’s Tyrese Maxey.

Vassell was a two-year player at Florida State, averaging 12.7 points and 5.1 rebounds on 49% shooting from the field and 41.5% shooting from 3-point range his last year. He looked to be a solid “3-and-D” wing for the Spurs as the first pick of a new rebuilding era.

And while he hasn’t made any All-Star teams like Haliburton and Maxey, Vassell has carved out a good career so far.

In six seasons with San Antonio, Vassell has averaged 14.1 points and 3.8 rebounds on 37.2% shooting from 3-point range. His best season came in 2023-24, when he put up 19.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists on 37.2% shooting from 3-point range.

Vassell has continued to be a valuable member as the Spurs marched to 62 wins this year. A regular starter at the small forward position, he’s provided the team with 3-point shooting and defense—fulfilling his draft promise. 

Looking at who was drafted before Vassell, the only players from that group who have made an All-Star team so far are Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball and Deni Avdija. 

Meanwhile, James Wiseman, Patrick Williams, Isaac Okoro, Onyeka Okongwu, Killian Hayes, Obi Toppin and Jalen Smith are all arguably less impactful than Vassell has been, despite being drafted before him. 

So while he’s not the biggest name, he’s turned out to be an important contributor and will be a key piece of what the Spurs are able to accomplish in the playoffs. 

The Spurs’ 2021 and 2022 draftees weren’t nearly as impactful as Vassell has been. After finishing 33-39 in 2020-21, San Antonio selected Alabama guard Josh Primo with the No. 12 pick; he would be released shortly into his second season due to off-the-court issues.

The Spurs were armed with three first-round picks after finishing 34-48 in the 2021-22 season. All three are no longer in the Alamo City. 

Jeremy Sochan, selected No. 9 overall, was released earlier this season and now suits up for the Knicks. 

Malaki Branham (No. 20) and Blake Wesley (No. 25) were both traded for Kelly Olynyk in 2025. Four first-round picks in two years resulting in a 34-year-old backup center isn’t exactly great.

That leads us to the 2023 NBA Draft Lottery, which saw San Antonio in prime position to nab a building block after finishing 22-60—tied for the second-worst record in the NBA. 

Meanwhile, over in France, a 7-foot-4-inch prospect was drawing plenty of attention and building buzz as the consensus No. 1 overall pick. Many teams knew that if they could get their hands on him, they could be rostering one of the greatest prospects in NBA history.

The prospect was, of course, Victor Wembanyama. Whoever would win the 2023 NBA Draft Lottery would have a gem on their hands.

Detroit, San Antonio and Houston all had a 14% chance of landing Wemby, on account of being the three worst-teams in the league the prior season. 

Unfortunately for the 17-65 Pistons, they landed the No. 5 overall pick despite having by far the worst mark in the league. The 22-60 Rockets also fell from No. 3 to No. 4. 

That resulted in San Antonio (14% chance), Charlotte (12.5%) and Portland (10.5%) representing the best odds to land the top pick. 

No. 3 ended up being Portland, which meant Wembanyama would soon be calling either Charlotte or San Antonio home… Spurs fans know the rest.

The San Antonio Spurs won the 2023 NBA Draft Lottery and the rights to select Wembanyama. They made it official a few weeks later, kick-starting their next era in the process. 

Suffice to say, it isn’t a decision that’s kept Spurs executives up at night. 

Wemby immediately started turning heads, winning Rookie of the Year while averaging 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds and a league-leading 3.6 blocks. He proved he could also stretch the floor, hitting 1.8 3-pointers a game on 32.5% shooting.

It was much of the same his second season, when The Alien averaged 24.3 points, 11 rebounds while again leading the league in blocks, at 3.8 a game. He also made his first All-Star team. 

Unfortunately, the sophomore campaign was cut short when he was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis right after the All-Star break, having played just 46 games.

This season was the big turning point, and the beginning of hype being fulfilled.

While the Spurs were bad (22-60) his first season and average in his second (23-29 before Wemby’s injury), San Antonio leapt ahead with its 62-20 campaign this year.  

Wembanyama has spearheaded the success. He’s coming off an MVP-caliber season that saw him average a career-high 25 points, 11.5 rebounds and – for the third time in as many seasons – leading the league in blocks at 3.1 a game in 64 games.

He’s also the favorite to win Defensive Player of the Year for the first time, hypothetically joining David Robinson, Alvin Robertson and Kawhi Leonard (twice) as the only Spurs in NBA history to win the honor. 

Other players drafted after Wemby in 2023 have proven to be solid picks – Brandon Miller, Amen Thompson and Keyonte George, to name a few – but none have turned their teams into must-see TV like San Antonio’s young star has.  

The decision may have been obvious to take Wemby in that position three years ago. Sometimes you have to make the obvious decision to move forward.

And the Spurs are in a much better place because of it.

Wemby’s rookie year in 2023-24 was promising, but the Spurs were still not a great team as he warmed up to NBA competition, finishing 22-60 for the second year in a row. That was the fifth-worst record in the league, resulting in a 10.5% chance of San Antonio landing the No. 1 overall pick. 

Lightning wouldn’t strike in the Alamo City again; they moved up one spot to the No. 4 pick. But unlike the year before, there was no Wemby-esque prospect. 

In fact, it was highly regarded as one of the weaker classes in recent memory. 

Atlanta ended up winning the lottery despite having a 3% chance. They selected Zaccharie Risacher, who has been a bit of a disappointment for a No. 1 overall pick two seasons in (11.1 points, 3.7 rebounds in 119 games so far). The Washington Wizards got the second pick, selecting Alex Sarr. He’s shown flashes, averaging 16.3 points, 7.4 rebounds and two blocks a game this past season.

The Houston Rockets also jumped up to the No. 3 overall pick, selecting Kentucky guard Reed Sheppard, who had a good season this year averaging 13.5 points, 3.4 assists on 39.4% shooting from 3-point range.

When the Spurs found themselves on clock with the No. 4 pick, they selected a gem in what many people had deemed a weak draft. 

UConn guard Stephon Castle, fresh off an NCAA National Championship, heard his name called fourth as he headed to San Antonio. He quickly made a name for himself, becoming the second Spurs player to win Rookie of the Year in as many seasons after averaging 14.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists in his first campaign.

In year two, he got even better, raising his stats in almost every category: 16.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game for a 62-win Spurs team.

Castle has been arguably the best player from the 2024 NBA Draft class so far, and the Spurs got him at four. He’s provided San Antonio with poise, playmaking, defense and scoring as a combo guard throughout his first two seasons, becoming one of the team’s most valuable members at age 21.

This move wasn’t as flashy, but trading for former NBA champion Harrison Barnes gave the Spurs’ locker room some much-needed veteran leadership and championship experience.

In the 2024 offseason, former Spurs leader DeMar DeRozan was signed-and-traded from the Chicago Bulls to the Sacramento Kings. In that deal, the Kings traded Barnes to the Spurs. San Antonio virtually gave up nothing for the 32-year-old Barnes, who was coming off a season averaging 12.2 points on 38.7% shooting from 3-point range.

In San Antonio, Barnes has been a steady veteran presence. In 2024-25, he started all 82 games for the Spurs averaging 12.3 points on a career-high 43.3% shooting from 3-point range.

This season, Barnes took more of a back seat, playing 77 games and averaging 9.9 points on 38.8% shooting from 3-point range. It was his first season averaging less than 10 points since his sophomore campaign over a decade ago, but his availability and leadership have clearly made a difference on this 62-win season.

In that same offseason, the Spurs also brought in 39-year-old Chris Paul, who gave San Antonio some additional veteran leadership starting all 82 games. He wasn’t brought back to the Spurs this season, but I’m sure his wisdom passed down to Wemby and Castle paid dividends this year.

Just before the 2024-25 NBA Trade Deadline, the Spurs were looking to make a move. Many people thought they were eyeing Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, but San Antonio really had eyes for one of Harrison Barnes’ ex-teammates in Sacramento.

After making the playoffs during the 2022-23 season, the once-hopeful Kings resorted back to mediocrity from 2023-2025, missing the playoffs both seasons.

De’Aaron Fox, playing some of his best basketball up until that point, didn’t really fit the Sacramento timeline anymore. 

So San Antonio swooped in and traded for the Kentucky guard who was averaging 25 points a game at that point.

The three-team deal (which, coincidentally, also involved San Antonio, Sacramento and Chicago) saw:

• Spurs receive: De’Aaron Fox, Jordan McLaughlin
• Kings receive: Zach LaVine, Sidy Cissoko, 2025 second round from Spurs (Maxime Raynaud), a 2026 2nd round draft pick, a 2027 1st round draft pick, a 2027 2nd round draft pick, a 2028 2nd round draft pick and a 2031 1st round draft pick
• Bulls receive: Zach Collins, Tre Jones, 2025 first round from Spurs (Noa Essengue), Kevin Huerter

Essentially, the Spurs gave up Zach Collins, Tre Jones, Noa Essengue, Sidy Cissoko, Maxime Raynaud, a 2026 second-round draft pick, a 2027 first, a 2027 second, a 2028 second and a 2031 first for Fox and McLaughlin.

That might seem like a lot, but for one of the best point guards in the league at age 27, I’m sure the Spurs aren’t complaining.

Fox only played 17 games in his first season with the Spurs, averaging 19.7 points and 6.8 assists before suffering a season-ending injury.

This season, after missing some time to start the year with another injury, Fox played in 72 games averaging 18.6 points, 6.2 assists and 1.2 steals, earning his first All-Star appearance since 2022-23.

While his numbers aren’t as flashy as they were in Sacramento, Fox’s presence as a reliable point guard has definitely been felt, especially towards the end of games. He’s also helped mentor fellow guards in Castle as well as rookie Dylan Harper.

With only his second playoff appearance in nine seasons, I’m sure Fox will elevate his game even more with the lights even brighter.

The rich got richer when the Spurs landed the No. 2 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. Fresh off two Rookie of the Years (Wemby and Castle), San Antonio had the opportunity to add yet another young star to their mix.

The No. 1 overall pick to be made by the Mavericks was unanimously Duke’s Cooper Flagg, and the No. 2 prospect seemed to also be clear: Rutgers guard Dylan Harper.

And with the No. 2 pick, the Spurs were in position to select Harper. The problem? They already had two great young point guards in Fox and Castle.

San Antonio had to make a decision: trade the pick away for a position of need (Kevin Durant and Giannis’ names were rumored here) or select a potential generational point guard and have a three-headed monster in the point guard room.

They chose the latter. Nearly a year later, the short-term returns and long-term potential aren’t to be ignored. 

While he probably won’t win Rookie of the Year like his two rookie predecessors, 20-year-old Harper put together a solid rookie campaign, posting a stat line of 11.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 69 games, larging coming off the bench.  

The reason why Harper is an honorable mention is because his presence on the team was more of a cherry on top rather than a true difference-maker for the Spurs like the other players we’ve discussed. This isn’t a knock on Harper, who may have the highest ceiling of any player not named Wemby on the team. 

Due to his limited role on the team this year, Spurs fans should be expecting this output to be the floor for Harper going forward.

Another Spurs player who had a career-year this season was Julian Champagnie, who averaged a career-high 11.1 points on 38.1% shooting from 3-point range in a starting role. He also was one of two Spurs players to play all 82 games (his second year in a row not missing a game).

But do you remember how the Spurs got Champagnie in the first place?

In July of 2022, Champagnie signed a two-way contract with the Philadelphia 76ers. After just two games that he didn’t scored in, he was waived in Feb. 2023. 

Two days later, the Spurs claimed him.

In 15 games for the Spurs that season, Champagnie averaged 11 points on 40.7% 3-point shooting and was later rewarded with a multi-year contract from San Antonio.

Since then, he’s started most games for the Spurs, culminating in a career year this season on a 62-win Spurs team. On Christmas Eve, Champagnie gave fans a reason to pop the champagne early when he hit 11 3-pointers—a new franchise record. 

The Spurs know a gem when they see one. And with the Champagnie claim, from being waived to emerging as one of the best sharpshooters in the league, they proved it. 

The Spurs didn’t just waltz to 62 wins this season; they made strategic and ultimately fulfilling moves through the draft and trades that got them to this moment.

Drafting Wembanyama was the easy part. Forming a team around him to succeed for the present and foreseeable future was the hard part.

Let’s see how this magical season ends—and how they’ll continue building from here.