Heading into the 2024 NBA Draft, the San Antonio Spurs had what you might consider a treasure trove of assets.

Of course, the Oklahoma City Thunder still have the draft war chest that remains the envy of many, but that’s a story for another time. Meanwhile, the Spurs had four picks in this year’s NBA Draft, with two in the first eight selections. For teams, draft picks are like gold and tend to be crucial pieces in trades. Just ask the New York Knicks, who pretty much mortgaged their future in acquiring another Villanova Wildcat in Mikal Bridges.

In reality, drafts are not always about the players selected. Savvy moves aren’t just limited to selections; the wheeling and dealing is equally important, given how the returns can either be a key veteran or a draft pick that could prove valuable in the future.

So how does this all figure into Victor Wembanyama’s future? The 2024 Draft was about getting help for him.

At this point, San Antonio’s roster needed work and they’re clearly focused on addressing those concerns now and in the future. Wembanyama was by and large the star of the 2023 NBA Draft and while this year’s edition may not have someone at his level, there are still quality players to be found.

Thanks to Wembanyama’s talents, the Spurs can surround him with players who will feed off his activity or benefit from how the defense pays attention to him. Thankfully, the player with the skill set with the best fit at that point in the draft fell into their laps.

Stephon Castle looked ready from the jump despite being a freshman. As one of the key players in the UConn Huskies run to the NCAA title, Castle was fourth in the team in scoring (11.1 points per game) and played the fourth-most minutes on the Huskies. It spoke to the trust UConn head coach Dan Hurley had in him and the strides Castle made in the span of a season.

Harrison Ingram is another player from another storied program who could prove to be valuable in time. Having played 102 games in three seasons with the Stanford Cardinal and the UNC Tar Heels, Ingram made 38.5 percent of his 3-point attempts and averaged 30.7 minutes in three seasons. He’s not afraid to get physical in order to get his points and has shown he can be patient, qualities that show Ingram can be coachable and continue to grow.

However, the expectation is that Castle and Ingram will nonetheless need time to develop and get used to the rigors of the NBA. An 82-game season is a big jump from playing 30 or so games in a year. It’s a long season so they’ll experience ups and downs, but they’ll definitely have opportunities to shine and get more chemistry with their teammates. 

Meanwhile, Juan Nunez, who was selected by the Indiana Pacers with the 36th overall pick and acquired by San Antonio in exchange for the 35th overall pick in Johnny Furphy, is a prototypical Spurs player in that he will make the right play and put his body on the line to make sure his team is successful.

Nunez could join San Antonio for the summer league, but there is a chance that he will continue to spend some time overseas to get more experience, something that the Spurs have done in the past for some of their players and to great success. In fact, their other moves in the 2024 NBA Draft revealed as much.

Trades were very much a part of San Antonio’s draft night plans. Apart from the Nunez trade, the Spurs sent Rob Dillingham, the eighth overall pick, to the Minnesota Timberwolves for a 2030 first-round pick swap (top-1 protected) and a 2031 unprotected first-round pick.

The lack of potential stars, though, limited the potential veteran returns, so San Antonio wisely traded Dillingham for future picks. Down the road, those picks could prove handy either in the draft itself or when making future trades. 

Going forward, the Spurs can still pursue players in free agency and with a young roster, a veteran player who can contribute on the court and off it will be valuable for a team looking to inch its way back to postseason contention. The likes of Jonas Valanciunas, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Kevin Love, or Bruce Brown (if the Toronto Raptors decline his option) have either championship experience or a steady presence that could help less experienced players navigate through the challenges that will come. They also would complement Wembanyama’s versatile game.

It’s been more or less a year since Victor Wembanyama was drafted by the San Antonio Spurs, and yet he still figures in conversations related to the Spurs’ draft plans. Such is the nature of having a generational star who has helped bring a franchise back from limbo. Now it’s San Antonio’s turn to give Wembanyama an environment where he can thrive.