On the night between Tuesday and Wednesday, the San Antonio Spurs won the NBA lottery and will be the first pick in next month's draft. Most years it's a nice piece of news that mostly interests mice, but every now and then it's a piece of news that anyone who follows the league knows can be historically significant.
This year is such a year, because France's Victor Wembanyama is the most talked-about prospect to enter the league since LeBron James and the consensus that he is going to change the future of his chosen club is broader than the scientific consensus around global warming (OK, OK, Suri, I didn't mean to wake up all the trolls. Go back to sleep).
It was a pretty surprising draw – while the Spurs, who finished tied with the second-worst record, were one of the 3 teams most likely to win (14%), Charlotte jumped from 4th to 2nd place and Portland from 5th to 3rd, and both can be very pleased as Scott Henderson and Brandon Miller are also considered great prospects. This comes at the expense of pushing the Rockets (a Spur-like record) to the fourth pick and the Pistons (with the worst record in the league this season) to the fifth pick. And while there weren't big names like Boston, Lakers or New York involved at the top of the lottery this time, enough people are now online about whether or not it's good that the Spurs won.
"I'm trying to win a ring ASAP, so be ready."
- Victor Wembanyama. 🗣️
pic.twitter.com/Xo71Aw4pGi
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) May 17, 2023
Why are people upset that the Spurs won?
Between 68 and 76, the Spurs reached the ABA playoffs in 8 of 9 seasons. After the merger with the NBA, they continued to get there for 7 consecutive years, for a total of 9 out of 11 years. Then, after missing the playoffs overall for the second time in franchise history, and with the fourth-worst record in the league, they got the No. 1 pick in the draft. And who was available that year? David Robinson - Historical Center The Spurs took him, although they had to wait two years for him to finish his commitments to the U.S. Navy, but once he arrived they went from 21 to 56 wins, and 7 consecutive playoff appearances.
Then, at the start of the 96-7 season, Robinson was injured and ended the season very early. The prize that awaited at the end of that year? Tim Duncan. Yes, that's right, historic forward/center. So the Spurs threw the entire season in one of the sharpest tanking moves ever, finished with the third-worst record, and in the lottery? You already know the answer: win first place, pick a one-time interior player, and go on a streak of 22 playoff appearances (only the last 2 after Duncan retired), including, yes, 6 finals and 5 championships.
And now, after several seasons of unsuccessful management, they have decided – in honor of Wemby – to go tanking again this year, with all their might. Result? The Grand Prize, a (potentially) historic interior actor. Third time ice cream. Obviously it brings out the eyes of many fans. Obviously, a small-market club getting a big star is not great news for league managers. And obviously enough already. Really.
Wembanyama in action. Popovich knows how to develop such players,
Why are people happy that the Spurs won?
First, because it can be argued that karma should be for them. When they chose Robinson and knew they would have to wait for him, they not only had the patience, but also the ability to build a successful team around him. Then they did it again with Duncan. And when they were a step away from completing a perfect transition from him, Kawhi Leonard started with his nonsense and ran away from them.
Second, with this track record of developing and maximizing the potential of players, and a rich history of non-American talent, everyone is confident that with the best development team in the league, Wembanyama will come out more like Robinson and Duncan, and less like many other names who haven't gotten as far as they could. Now all you have to do is convince Gregg Popovich to stay there. Which is a shame, because the Democratic Party could have used him too. Oh shwin, there are more important things than politics.
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