3 reasons San Antonio Spurs will make the 2019 NBA Playoffs

3. A plethora of backcourt talent

Parker and Ginobili are gone. That may seem like a huge crutch on the surface, but it’s time for a new wave of guard talent in San Antonio. And there’s plenty of it.

That’s a good thing, because the Spurs have already been dealt another blow. The 2018-19 regular season hasn’t even started yet, and point guard Dejounte Murray has been lost to a torn ACL. Chances are he won’t see any action this season, seeing as the injury generally carries at least an eight-month recovery timeline.

Luckily for San Antonio, they have players like Patty Mills and Derrick White to fall back on. Both are capable of playing significant minutes this season, which should alleviate some of the pain of replacing Murray. It’s not a solve-all, but it could be much worse.

As for the 2-guard spot, the Spurs now have DeRozan to bring some star power to the lineup. He immediately takes over for Leonard as the go-to scoring option and offensive fire starter. Expect him to get plenty of minutes and be a driving force for any success San Antonio enjoys in 2018-19.

Behind him, the Spurs can call upon Bryn Forbes and Lonnie Walker IV (once he’s done rehabbing from knee surgery) to pick up the occasional minutes at shooting guard. Forbes brings long-range shooting off the bench, while Walker carriers some intrigue as an athletic guard who can create points in a number of ways.

Either way you look at it, the Spurs offer plenty of talent in the backcourt. The amount of depth and upside will give them a big advantage when the playoff race gets heated.