San Antonio Spurs: 3 takeaways from 2019 NBA offseason

1. Get ready for Lonnie Walker IV

Lonnie Walker IV is one of the reasons Spurs fans can be comfortable with a potential teardown.

As the Spurs are prone to do, they kept their 2018 first-round selection hidden from the spotlight in his rookie season. Their developmental program stands among the best in the world, and the major league team is about to reap some serious benefits.

A guard out of Miami, Walker had a unique freshman season for the Hurricanes. His NBA-bound teammate, Bruce Brown, went down with a foot injury early in the season, forcing Walker to carry the load for the latter part of the season. He was not quite ready for that level of defensive attention, but it was a nice trial by fire stretch for himself and scouts.

Though his hair is an attention-grabber, his game stands out too. He’s a flashy scoring guard with solid handles who’s main weaknesses out of college were decision-making and shot mechanics. For a development system like San Antonio’s, those weaknesses are among the easiest to mitigate.

With both the Austin Spurs and the Summer Spurs, Walker was instructed to do one thing: Score. In the G-League, Walker poured in 16.6 points per game (4th on the team) with .439/.358/.811 shooting splits. In Summer League he had a more focal role, averaging 24.8 points per game on 55.1 percent shooting, good enough for second-team All Summer League honors.

After one G-League season, he’s well on his way as an NBA player. Just saying that Walker did great in Summer League can only mean so much. But in his case, the skills he displayed were advanced for a player.

Walker displayed good shot-creation abilities and a quick trigger, with solid handles to get into the teeth of defenses. He also had a nice touch at the rim, finishing some tough shots with acrobatic moves.

Entering his second season, it doesn’t seem like Walker has much left to prove at any non-NBA level. He’s ready for a role now, whether the Spurs are prepared for him or not.