4 Teams that can land Wembanyama without winning the NBA draft lottery
By Cal Durrett
NBA Team #3: San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are likely to end up with one of the three worst records in the NBA next season. Although that would give them a 14% chance at Wembanyama, they have contingencies if they don’t land the first pick. They’ve compiled an impressive haul of picks in record time, including picking up three firsts and two pick swaps earlier this summer.
They can also add to that haul by dealing Jakob Poeltl, Doug McDermott, and Josh Richardson, each of whom should be worth at least a first-round pick. If they can, then their draft stash will begin to rival that of the Thunder, who used up three of their picks in this year’s draft as well as trading three future firsts to the Knicks for the 12th pick.
That’s important because if the Spurs end up selecting second, they have a possible future superstar in Scoot Henderson and a platter of picks to offer up to swap places. Or, they land the third pick and can still offer a great player as well as picks. The Thunder and Knicks can both offer young talent and future picks, but neither will likely pick in the top three, giving the Spurs a major leg up on them.