Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images Victor Wembanyama is playing in the perimeter, Devin Vassell is coming off the bench and Stephon Castle is starting to find his groove. The PtR crew discusses the state of the Spurs. The Spurs have changed how they use Victor Wembanyama, trying to get him the ball away from the post. Is that the right move? Marilyn Dubinski: If you look at the way we were forced to accept the Jeremy-Sochan-at-point-guard experiment — that it’s for development purposes — then it’s acceptable, at least for now. Wemby has said the only way he will improve as a shooter is by shooting, which makes plenty of sense, and he has the green light from the coaching staff. There’s nothing wrong with adding different layers to his game — it’s what he needs to do if he wants to be discussed in GOAT status someday — but my hope is he will eventually work the post game back into his arsenal and only take outside shots situationally or within the flow of the offense instead of jacking them up early in the shot clock just because he can. Mark Barrington: He’s not going to be able to fight for post position against players that have more bulk and strength than him, so it makes sense. He can get interior position on movement plays, especially when the Spurs start hitting shots outside like they have the last few games. But playing with his back to the basket like a traditional post player just leads to turnovers and bad spacing, so it’s a good adjustment. Jesus Gomez: It’s clearly the right choice. I might expand on this soon, but trying to force this version of Wembanyama to the post would be a mistake and the spacing is not good enough to have him be a rim-running pick-and-roll center. He’s also special because he’s good on the perimeter at 7’3”, so letting him develop those skills is smart. Some of the threes he takes and every turnover that comes from him trying to dribble into traffic are rage-inducing, but that has more to do with his decision-making, which is also a work in progress, than with how he’s being used. Bill Huan: It sure isn’t the right move for my fantasy team, I’ll tell you that for free! In terms of his actual development, though, it does make sense. Wemby is still just 20 and needs to expand his game and experiment as much as possible in order to reach his ceiling, and given that the team’s not in its contention window yet, he should be developing his skills as a perimeter player. However, I do believe that he will end up doing the most damage in the interior, so we can’t just ignore his post play, either. Devin Vassell will come off the bench “for the foreseeable future,” according to Mitch Johnson. Could you see him becoming a sixth man permanently, like Manu Ginobili? Dubinski: Johnson also said “as he ramps back up”, so his current bench role seems to be more a matter of conditioning than anything. I know we said this about Manu, but I believe Vassell is too good (and too well-paid) to permanently accept a bench role, and frankly he shouldn’t have to once the Spurs are at full strength again. At this point, Keldon Johnson is the sixth man, and I believe Vassell will be back to a permanent starter role sooner than later. Barrington: I would expect him to return to the starting lineup once he gets fully healthy. I think phrases like “for the foreseeable future” are essentially meaningless when said by someone on the Spurs payroll. It probably just means that they don’t have a fixed timeline that they’re ready to share publicly yet. It’s my guess that he’ll be a starter whenever they’re confident he can play starter minutes, which could be a month or two away. Gomez: Seems highly unlikely. The team would have to go on a tear with him in the second unit and Stephon Castle would have to consistently be shining on both ends for a permanent move to the bench from Vassell to be somewhat reasonable. And even then, as soon as Sochan returns, Devin would make more sense as the starter. The Spurs have had players, including Vassell come off the bench after injury, so this is likely just temporary. As Bill says, a more talented team could consider having such a good scorer in the second unit, but San Antonio needs him starting. Huan: No way, Jose. Manu accepting a bench role is an outlier among outliers in the sport, and there’s no way Vassell will be fine with doing the same. More importantly, this Spurs team is simply not good enough not to start him, and that will likely remain the case even when they begin to compete in a few years time. Stephon Castle looks like the real deal. It’s early, but how good do you think he could be in the next three years? Dubinski: We all know how much points and stats mean to All-Star voters, so it might be stretch to say he will reach that point in three years. However, I do believe he will be a starter, maybe even at point guard, by then and possibly an All-NBA defender. Weird as a it sounds with my limited worldview, he could end up being a Dejounte Murray-Derrick White hybrid but better. Both are fringe All-Stars and elite defenders with improved shooting games from when they got here, and White in particular has a knack for making everyone around him better. If Castle ends up being White with a higher ceiling in three years, I’d be a very happy fan. Barrington: I like Marilyn’s Dejounte Murray/Derrick White comparison, a tall guard with quickness who has defensive skills and can break down defenses with passing and an adequate handle. His current weakness is shooting, and early in his rookie season he’s showing glimpses of working that out. He’s unafraid of taking big shots and his form is excellent, so it’s quite possible that he will become a really good shooter by year three. Player comparisons only get you so far, because every player is an individual, so while I think the comparisons to Murray and White are useful, Castle has the potential to be better than either of them. He’s shown that he works hard on his game, so I think his ceiling is unlimited at the moment. He’s certainly benefiting with Chris Paul mentoring him, and with the Spurs coaching staff giving him plenty of playing time in his rookie season to get his lumps early against elite competition. Gomez: Projecting how good Castle will be is fascinating because, first, it’s so early in his career that nothing seems off the table, and second, from the flashes we’ve seen, he could have a range of outcomes. I wouldn’t be shocked if he’s on his way to stardom in a couple of years, but his skillset is such a work in progress that it’s hard to tell even what kind of player he’ll be. He’s good at driving but not shooting and his passing, vision and clock management are not point guard-like. The defense is good, but will it be elite? It could be. I think the comparisons others have used are reasonable and I’d add Marcus Smart and Jrue Holiday to that list. How quickly Castle can get there and whether he has another leap in him after is impossible to know. Huan: I also like Marilyn’s Dejounte/Derrick comp for Castle, but I feel obligated to pump the brakes on his chances of actually reaching those heights. Dejounte has already made an All-Star team and Derrick provides All-Star level impact, but it is extremely unlikely that any young player (even high lottery picks) ever reach that point outside of the most elite of prospects. In my opinion, a more realistic expectation of Castle is one where he develops into a Lu Dort/KCP level of player. In other words, an elite role player who fits on any team and is a very good 4th/5th starter on a competitive roster. I’m skeptical that Castle will ever shoot threes at a ~40% clip, but Dort’s development gives me some hope. Even if his shooting never fully develops, Castle has more on-ball and playmaking juice than those two, and I’d be more than happy if he turned into that caliber of player. Is there any topic you want to see the PtR staff discuss? We’d love to hear from you. Post your questions in the comments and they could be featured in an upcoming edition of our roundtable.