The San Antonio Spurs were able to add another young piece to their roster this offseason by picking up rookie Stephon Castle in the 2024 NBA Draft, and they’ve been happy with the early returns from the 19-year-old, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.
“Saying a team is high on their first-round draft pick isn’t exactly breaking news, but the Spurs are very happy with what they’ve seen on him so far,” Windhorst said.
Castle has had a strong preseason so far, showing off his potential in the three exhibition games the Spurs have played to this point.
In San Antonio’s first preseason game, Castle scored five points on 2-for-3 shooting in 19 minutes. He also added two rebounds and three assists. However, he did turn the ball over six times.
In the next game, he turned things up a notch, scoring a team-high 17 points on 4-for-9 shooting from the field and 2-for-5 shooting from deep. He also got to the line frequently. Perhaps more importantly, he limited his turnovers, committing just one in 22 minutes.
In the following game, he was impressive again, scoring 11 points on 4-for-7 shooting from the field and 1-for-2 shooting from deep in 19 minutes. He committed just two turnovers.
Castle could become an important part of San Antonio’s core moving forward. The core in question is of course headlined by rising star Victor Wembanyama.
Another thing working in Castle’s favor is that he knows how to win. In his lone collegiate season, he helped the University of Connecticut win the NCAA title. Across 34 appearances, he averaged 11.1 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game.
Anyone who can contribute to winning is likely welcome around a Spurs organization that hasn’t tasted the playoffs in several years. San Antonio is trying to earn its first playoff bid since 2019, and eventually, the team would like to win its first title since 2014, but the Spurs likely aren’t ready to compete at that level just yet.
Castle was the fourth player off the board in this year’s draft, so there will certainly be some expectations for him as he begins his NBA career, but right now, the rookie is likely just focused on soaking up as much as he can and learning what it takes to play a role at the pro level.
