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[San Antonio Spurs]

Stephon Castle Feels Like He Has NBA Award ‘Locked Up’

(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Stephon Castle has made quite an impression on the San Antonio Spurs during his rookie year.

In fact, he has made an impression on the entire league.

Because of that, he is a frontrunner to claim Rookie of the Year for 2024-25.

Castle feels that he is far and away the favorite to win that prize, and a recent statement from him confirmed that.

“I feel like, at this point, I pretty much got it locked up,” Castle said, per Paul Garcia and NBACentral.

“I feel like, at this point, I pretty much got it locked up…”

– Stephon Castle on the rookie of the year race

(Via @PaulGarciaNBA ) pic.twitter.com/uOxZuqNJUT

— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) April 7, 2025

Castle has earned an average of 14.5 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game this season, shooting 42.4 percent from the field.

He was lucky to join a team that really needed his sort of talent.

The Spurs were willing to see what Castle was capable of and have given him a lot of time on the court during his first year.

He is playing a bit more than 26 minutes per game and has started in 43 of 77 matches.

This season’s rookie class received a lot of criticism last summer after the draft, but they have shown a lot of potential during 2024-25.

Other players like Bub Carrington, Zach Edey, Rob Dillingham, Jared McCain, Dalton Knecht, and plenty more have gained a lot of attention.

But it feels like Castle is the one who will win Rookie of the Year.

If he does claim that prize, all eyes will be on what’s next for him and what he can do in his second year.

The Spurs are getting better, especially with Victor Wembanyama at the center of all their plans.

The team will get more exposure and more success in the years ahead, and Castle could be deeply involved in all they accomplish.

Winning Rookie of the Year is obviously a big deal, but Castle will have to keep it up and continue to impress.

The post Stephon Castle Feels Like He Has NBA Award ‘Locked Up’ appeared first on The Cold Wire.

Source: https://www.thecoldwire.com/stephon-castle-feels-like-he-has-nba-award-locked-up/

 

[San Antonio Spurs]

Victor Wembanyama Still Leads An Incredible Stat This Season

(Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

NBA fans didn’t get to see enough of Victor Wembanyama this year.

Sadly, due to deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder, Wembanyama only played in 46 games in 2024-25.

But during that time, he did extraordinary things.

In fact, according to StatMuse, Wembanyama has still rejected the most shots this season, with 176 blocks.

He has been out of the league since February 12, but Wembanyama is still the block leader for the league.

He's been out since February 12. pic.twitter.com/IUsxI0MDEA

— StatMuse (@statmuse) April 10, 2025

This is a testament to the colossal power of Wembanyama, who is now in his second year in the NBA.

Before being sidelined, he was averaging 24.3 points, 11.0 rebounds, and 3.8 blocks per game.

There is no doubt that he was the frontrunner for Defensive Player of the Year and was helping the San Antonio Spurs turn things around and become a much stronger force in the Western Conference.

Now, fans will have to wait until next season to see more of Wembanyama’s power.

The latest reports say that he has undergone surgery and is feeling fine, so the outlook for Wembanyama is good.

This is hopefully not the beginning of a troubling trend because no one wants to see this star out of commission for long, and everyone hopes he doesn’t get hurt or suffer medical problems often.

The race for Defensive Player of the Year has opened up since Wembanyama’s departure, with many people feeling that Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors will win.

But this stat proves that everyone needs to be prepared for Wembanyama’s return because he will continue to dominate.

The post Victor Wembanyama Still Leads An Incredible Stat This Season appeared first on The Cold Wire.

Source: https://www.thecoldwire.com/victor-wembanyama-still-leads-an-incredible-stat-this-season/

 

[San Antonio Spurs]

Victor Wembanyama Still Led League In Defensive Stat This Season

(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs hasn’t played a game since February, but he is still one of the most dominant players in the league.

According to Courtside Buzz, Wembanyama still has the most blocks in 2024-25, with 176, or 3.8 per game.

But because he only played in 46 games, he is not able to hold the title of blocks leader.

Instead, that honor has gone to Brook Lopez, who has 148 blocks (1.9 per game), and Walker Kessler with 2.4.

WEMBY UNOFFICIALLY LED NBA IN BLOCKS: Victor Wembanyama STILL led the NBA in blocks with 176 (3.8 BPG) despite playing in just 46 games!

But, because Wemby played in so few games, he did not qualify to be the official NBA leader.

Who led the NBA in 2024-25, officially?… pic.twitter.com/Mvh1QXrE1n

— Courtside Buzz (@CourtsideBuzzX) April 13, 2025

This leads to an important question: will Wembanyama be Defensive Player of the Year next season and the years beyond?

If he had stayed healthy this year and reached the 65-game threshold, Wembanyama most certainly would have been DPOY.

Even before the season began, it felt like the league was aching to give him that trophy.

Wembanyama wasn’t able to play as much as he wanted, but the prognosis about him seems good, and he should be back and ready to play at the start of 2025-26.

Wembanyama’s defensive game has been great since entering the league.

In fact, all of his skills have gotten better, and Wembanyama has improved on both ends of the court.

For the season, he averaged 24.3 points, 11.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.1 steals, and 3.8 blocks.

The league is filled with talented big men who can lock down opponents with their suffocating defense, but Wembanyama is even more special than most because he is so young, so incredible, and only getting better.

Wembanyama and the Spurs missed out on the playoffs this year, but they are hoping that when he is back and healthy next season, things will look very different.

The post Victor Wembanyama Still Led League In Defensive Stat This Season appeared first on The Cold Wire.

Source: https://www.thecoldwire.com/victor-wembanyama-still-led-league-in-defensive-stat-this-season/

 

[San Antonio Spurs]

Jeremy Sochan Raves About Chris Paul’s Notable Milestone

(Photo by Kevin Sousa/Getty Images)

He may appear in the playoffs this year, but Chris Paul of the San Antonio Spurs just pulled off something remarkable.

Paul appeared in all 82 games this regular season, averaging 8.8 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 7.7 assists.

At 39 years old, he is clearly still dedicated to the game and his team, and Spurs star Jeremy Sochan definitely noticed.

Speaking with Tom Orsborn, Sochan opened up about Paul’s amazing track record this year.

“He could be in flipping, I don’t know, Hawaii, doing nothing. And he’s here in San Antonio, Texas, busting his a– 82 f—–g games, just doing his thing. And I think that’s what I’ve noticed, just the passion that he has,” Sochan said, per Legion Hoops.

Jeremy Sochan on Chris Paul playing in his 82nd game of the season today:

“He could be in flipping, I don’t know, Hawaii, doing nothing. And he’s here in San Antonio, Texas, busting his a** 82 f***ing games, just doing his thing. And I think that’s what I’ve noticed, just the… pic.twitter.com/QrCnxKLVZj

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) April 14, 2025

Playing this much at any age is impressive, but doing it at 39 is incredible.

Even when it became apparent that the Spurs wouldn’t be reaching the playoffs, Paul was still ready to suit up every single night and give it his all.

Since coming to San Antonio at the start of the season, Paul has taken on a mentor role for many of the younger stars on the team, including Sochan.

He wants to inspire and lead them, and he’s the perfect man for that job.

No one is entirely sure what is next for Paul.

He has said that he wants to keep playing as long as he stays healthy, and he desires to remain in San Antonio.

He obviously has a lot of fight left in him and doesn’t want to play less even as he grows older.

Will he be with the Spurs next year, and will he come close to playing 82 games again?

He definitely isn’t slowing down.

The post Jeremy Sochan Raves About Chris Paul’s Notable Milestone appeared first on The Cold Wire.

Source: https://www.thecoldwire.com/jeremy-sochan-raves-about-chris-pauls-notable-milestone/

 

[San Antonio Spurs]

Gregg Popovich Recently Had Another Concerning Health Incident

(Photo by Tyler Kaufman/Getty Images)

The NBA was unfortunately without Gregg Popovich for the vast majority of the 2024-25 season.

After coaching just five games, Popovich suffered a mild stroke and took the rest of the season off.

Sadly, Popovich just had a medical setback on his road to recovery.

According to TMZ, per NBACentral, Popovich was taken to the hospital on Tuesday night after fainting at a restaurant.

He was transported out on a stretcher, sought medical care, and is now stable and recovering at home.

Gregg Popovich was taken to the hospital Tuesday night after fainting at a San Antonio restaurant, per @TMZ

TMZ reports he was stretchered out and may still be feeling effects from a mild stroke suffered in November.

Prayers for Pop

pic.twitter.com/dVkL6ZBdbp

— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) April 18, 2025

All of this raises many questions about what is next for Popovich and the San Antonio Spurs.

In Popovich’s absence, assistant coach Mitch Johnson led the team.

Popovich has visited the Spurs since his stroke and saw them after the All-Star break, but it’s not clear what will happen next year.

Reports said that Popovich was making progress, and the Spurs said they would let him decide what he wants to do.

There was hope that he’d be healthy enough to return to coaching next season, but this latest incident cast doubt on that idea.

It goes without saying that Popovich is one of the most respected and important coaches of all time.

He has been with the Spurs since the 1996-97 season and has led them to five championships.

If Popovich cannot come back to the Spurs because of his health, the team will be at a major turning point as they attempt to foster young talent like Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle.

The Spurs want Popovich back, but above all else, they want him healthy.

They hope he can recover and return to the team soon.

The post Gregg Popovich Recently Had Another Concerning Health Incident appeared first on The Cold Wire.

Source: https://www.thecoldwire.com/gregg-popovich-recently-had-another-concerning-health-incident/