Ron Johnson-Imagn Images An update on the Spurs’ draft picks and who they might take on draft night. With almost 41 games under their belts, the San Antonio Spurs are firmly hitting the doldrums of the NBA mid-season. The Spurs have outperformed their preseason expectations, but a stretch of poor play, including a three-game losing streak, has dropped them to below .500 at 18-19. It’s not panic time yet, as the trade deadline looms with the opportunity for external improvement heading into the All-Star break. Still, I’ve seen more and more folks focusing on what lies ahead in the 2025 NBA Draft. San Antonio looks like it’s past the point of playing for ping pong balls, but they still could see major improvements to their roster, with multiple selections expected in the upcoming draft. Meanwhile, the college basketball season is heating up, with teams finally getting into conference play. Now is when prospects separate themselves and a larger consensus on where they stack up against each other starts to take shape. It’s the perfect time to take stock of where the Spurs may find themselves come draft night. Potential Spurs picks Currently, the Spurs’ highest potential draft pick belongs to the Chicago Bulls. At 17-20, the Bulls are 9th on the board in the draft. San Antonio acquires this pick if it falls outside of the top 10. They’ll need Chicago to get into the playoff hunt to get the pick. With multiple Chicago veterans like Nikola Vucevic and Zach Lavine involved in trade rumors, there is a chance the Bulls elect to blow things up and tank toward the end of the season. If that’s the case, the Spurs will likely need to wait for this pick to convey in the future. San Antonio controls its draft destiny with their own first-round selection. Currently, that pick is slated to go inside the lottery at 11. Last season, the Atlanta Hawks jumped from 10 to 1 on lottery night. Anything is possible when your name is in the running. San Antonio has experienced good lottery luck lately. That could continue this summer. Speaking of the Hawks, they owe the Spurs their first-round pick this year courtesy of the Dejounte Murray trade. That pick is also headed for the lottery at 13. Atlanta is 19-19, and it seems like they could be headed for the playoffs in the Eastern Conference. I wouldn’t count on this pick landing in the lottery with how they’ve been playing. If they maintain, it’s possible the Spurs could have 3 selections in the late lottery. Prospects to watch In the last edition, we profiled: Cooper Flagg, Kon Knueppel, Egor Demin, and Tre Johnson. UCONN Wings: San Antonio reaped the benefits of the UCONN Huskies championship roster last year, selecting Stephon Castle. Despite his ups and downs, it’s hard to argue the rookie hasn’t looked ready for NBA competition. A lot of that is thanks to the preparation he received under UCONN head coach, Dan Hurley. The Huskies are back in the title conversation, currently 9th in the AP Top 25. They’ve been led by two wings who are intriguing NBA prospects. Freshman Liam McNeeley has been great for UCONN, averaging 13.6 points and 5.8 rebounds while shooting 37.9% from three. McNeeley has a great frame and a sweet shooting touch from deep. He’s more of a connective piece, but he’s physical and communicates on both ends of the floor. I don’t think you’d draft him for his upside, but San Antonio needs more two-way players who can shoot. At 6-7 (I think he looks a bit taller) he should be able to play multiple positions and guard up and down the lineup, giving the Spurs more flexibility around Victor Wembanyama. Similarly, Junior wing Alex Karaban has continued his streak of good play with the Huskies, averaging 15.9 points, 5 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks while shooting 41.5% from deep. Karaban is an awesome defender, especially off the ball as a secondary rim protector, and is a professional shooter with long range. Again, you’re looking at more of a role player at the next level and someone who the Spurs could probably get in the late teens to 20s if one of their picks falls down the draft order. Karaban has won two championships at UCONN and may be the only player on the team to three-peat. That’s the type of pedigree that makes sense for a team trying to win more games. Backup bigs: San Antonio has a backup center issue. Neither Zach Collins nor Charles Bassey have shown enough to warrant big minutes off the bench. That’s causing big issues for the Spurs who now have to play Wembanyama and Sochan more minutes than they’d like, leading to some regression late in games. The Spurs need to address this issue, either via trade or in the draft. There are plenty of intriguing big men in the draft that could fill that need long-term. Duke’s Khaman Maluach (8.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.1 blocks) is an athletic, yet raw prospect. Maryland’s Derik Queen (16 points, 8 rebounds, 1.1 blocks) is a bruising big who can dribble, pass and shoot with strong footwork, but is a defensive liability. Georgetown’s Thomas Sorber (15.1 points, 8.4 rebounds, 2.3 blocks) has been a dominant force as a freshman and shows signs of developing a three-ball. Auburn’s Johni Broome (18.7 points, 11.2 rebounds, 2.7 blocks) is an older prospect but might be the best player in college basketball. It feels odd to spend a first-round selection on a backup center, but if it ends up being a player who can play alongside him for the bulk of his prime, it may make sense to invest in the position. Out of all these players, I’m most intrigued by Sorber who may be available later in the draft. His frame and skillset are something the Spurs could develop into a really strong backup big man. If his shot develops, he could even play alongside Wembanyama thanks to his athleticism and strength. Combo guards: My favorite player in the 2025 draft class is Illinois freshman Kasparas Jakucionis. The Lithuanian has been incredible on and off the ball for the Illini. He’s averaging 16.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 5.4 assists while shooting 49.6% from the field, 41.4% from three, and 87.5% from the free throw line. He’s had awesome games against good NCAA teams like Northwestern, Arkansas, and Missouri. Jakucionis can score at all three levels, set up his teammates and he competes like hell. His biggest downfall is that he’s a bit turnover-prone (3.6 per game), as he tries to make too much happen with the ball in his hands. He’s exactly the type of tough-scoring combo guard the Spurs could use when they face offensive droughts. He’d be a great fit in the pick-and-roll with Wembanyama and could play well next to Castle as a fun 1-2 punch at the guard position. He’ll require a top-5 pick to get him, which means the Spurs will either need lottery luck or make a draft-day trade to go get him. If they are still looking for a combo guard later in the draft, the Spurs should look at Marquette senior, Kam Jones. He’s taken on an even bigger role after Tyler Kolek was drafted by the New York Knicks last year. He’s been great, averaging 19.7 points and 6.4 assists. Jones's shooting has taken a dip (going from 40.6% to 34.6% from three) with the increased usage, but he’s still an impressive shot-maker. Jones could end up being one of the biggest steals in the draft with his scoring ability. San Antonio will eventually need to start adding offensive weapons next to Wembanyama.