NBA – “If the Spurs had drafted him, they would never have had Wembanyama afterwards”

The history of a franchise can sometimes be decided by few things, especially at the time of the draft. Some are, for example, convinced that Victor Wembanyama would never have ended up in San Antonio if the Texans had selected a specific player a few years earlier… even if he is a hit today.

The Spurs had a lot of luck last summer when they drafted Victor Wembanyama, that’s a fact. Not only does the Frenchman have the potential to become a franchise player, but he perhaps embodies the future of the entire NBA.

Difficult to find better foundations to get the machine running again, but it will still be very complicated in 2023-24 with a bunch of defeats (3-16, last in the West).

Except that precisely, the abysmal background of play proposed by the Texans already annoys more than one and some even go so far as to question the strategy of the franchise over the last few years.

The 2020 draft in particular is being targeted by fans, during which San Antonio chose to bet on a young Devin Vassell in eleventh position. Or a spot only in front of a certain Tyrese Haliburton…

However, the latter is the star of the moment in the NBA with incredible stats (27 points and almost 12 assists on average) while leading the best attack in the league at the Pacers.

When we know that the Spurs are only 22nd in this area, it gives quite a contrast and some fans deplore that he was not able to play for the Spurs. Others, on the other hand, point out that such a scenario would have changed everything:

We choose Vassell over Halliburton because we had DJ and Derrick. Halliburton wouldn’t have gotten any minutes!! Vassell was mocked at 11 so it wasn’t really a bad pick per se, it was the safest pick. Besides, if the Spurs got Haliburton we wouldn’t have gotten Wemby. Wemby>Halli

— PJ Hoops (@RealPjHoops)

December 5, 2023

We chose Vassell over Halliburton because we already had Dejounte Murray and Derrick White. Haliburton would not have had minutes!! Vassell was mocked at pcik #11, so it wasn’t really a bad choice per se, it was the safer choice. Plus, if the Spurs had Haliburton, we wouldn’t have had Wemby. Wemby > Hali

Here again, it is difficult to find arguments to contradict this theory.

Building around a leader and very different from doing it with a pivot but above all, Haliburton had the opportunity to prove himself in Sacramento before landing in Indiana where he exploded. not sure he would have had that chance in Texas given the rotation at the time and so perhaps he would never have been able to become as strong there.

Would Tyrese Haliburton have had the same success at the Spurs as he now has at the Pacers?

This is a question that will forever remain unanswered. Instead, it is Victor Wembanyama who embodies the future of the franchise and we must hope that the latter can build a good team around him.