Spurs Select Stephon Castle 4th Overall in the 2024 NBA Draft

[BatManu20]

Ladies and gentleman, we got him :cry. My pet cat of the draft. Welcome to San Antonio Stephon Castle!

P0_4zZiHB78

tvxAbR65XMY

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[BatManu20]

LFG

[benefactor]

Welcome to San antonio. Please learn to shoot.

[vy65]

He’s called castle because of all them bricks … get it????

[LeBowen]

My first choice for #4, if he can become a respectable shooter, he's going to be scary.
Finally a point of attack defender.

[ace3g]

I guess he played really good in that workout against Devin Carter.

[Guru of Nothing]

The Dungeon Crabs of Stephon's Castle

[CGD]

LFG!!

[BatManu20]

Welcome to San antonio. Please learn to shoot.Tbh :lol

[DAF86]

"The Royal home of Stephon Castle"(?)

[Mr. Body]

I never thought there was much doubt, but... you never know.

I think Spurs fans are gonna fucking love this guy. He's going to play hard-ass basketball and become a foundational piece.

[TheChillFactor]

The Castle of Stephon Castle

[Mr. Body]

I never thought there was much doubt, but... you never know.

I think Spurs fans are gonna fucking love this guy. He's going to play hard-ass basketball and become a foundational piece.

[tbdog]

I'm concerned but obviously he took a winners approach to playing ball. Those shooting coaches need to get to work. It's interesting because Bufford was recently interviewed saying they are looking for shooting.

[benefactor]

Thank you hornets

[Rosewood]

The right choice. I think he is going to be fantastic in the NBA. Spurs written all over him.

[Light]

Yes! A point of attack defender with size. I'm loving the pick!

[r0drig0lac]

good

[ulosturedge]

Lol the Dilly thread getting more traffic then the actual pick we keeping.

[slick'81]

Definitely a dejounte replacement

[Mugen]

Poor kid, gonna get overshadowed by PATFO absolutely shitting the bed on draft night.

[SpursFan86]

Sad because my excitement over Castle immediately got crushed by us trading Dillingham for a pick 7 years down the road.

Whatever, glad we got him…#1 guy on the board with Sheppard gone.

[timtonymanu]

I'm excited for him, but he may also just be a bust. Either way, not upset we picked him.

But I loved all that huffing and puffing from sniffers when we were staring down a 20 game losing streak last year that we were tanking for the draft only to get an upgraded Tre Jones to play alongside Wemby. If this team sucks again next year, it's just because they suck lol. At least that draft has more nice players we can trade away to contenders because :cry classlessness, that's not what we are.

[ambchang]

Glad to have him even though I was hoping to get sheppard.

[poopbox]

He'll learn to shoot and he will be pretty good

He won't learn to shoot and we would have spent the number 4 pick on Matisse Thybulle

[ace3g]

https://x.com/mikefinger/status/1806150404813537350

[SpurPadre]

Welcome to the Spurs, Stephon. Liked what I saw of him in the NCAA Tourney and has good size. He says he wants to be a star while being a team oriented guy. We’ll see and I look forward to it!

[SpurPadre]

Welcome to the Spurs, Stephon. Liked what I saw of him in the NCAA Tourney and has good size. He says he wants to be a star while being a team oriented guy. We’ll see and I look forward to it!

[ace3g]

https://x.com/Casey_Viera/status/1806144478572695574

[cd98]

Seriously, if the dude gets a jump shot, he will be a stud. He's good to great at everything else. Just need to get Garland and we'll have our starting backcourt for a long time to come.

[Degoat]

Super pumped we got Castle, if he develops a jumper he’ll be the best from this class Imo

[DAF86]

Seriously, if the dude gets a jump shot, he will be a stud. He's good to great at everything else. Just need to get Garland and we'll have our starting backcourt for a long time to come.

Don't want Garland. We had a cheaper, potentially better, player in our hand and we let him go. Now they better double down on big guards. I want to build the longest team in the league.

[Mr. Body]

https://x.com/mikefinger/status/1806150404813537350

Probably not an NBA team as close to the Spurs in make-up and mentality as UConn.

[Mr. Body]

https://x.com/Casey_Viera/status/1806144478572695574

People sweating the PG stuff -- and he can play PG -- he mentions playing off-ball here. They're going to use him in all kinds of ways.

[Atl Spur]

I never thought there was much doubt, but... you never know.

I think Spurs fans are gonna fucking love this guy. He's going to play hard-ass basketball and become a foundational piece.

Never know with these clowns; people here in ATL know how great he is:)

[Gandalf]

Yeah, I’d rather the Spurs try to get Lauri Markannen.

[BatManu20]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GRCju25XsAAWvOz?format=jpg&name=large

[exstatic]

Stephon was the #9 recruit in the country. He could have written any ticket he wanted. Dozens of coaches would have just put the ball in his hands and said “do your thing.”

He chose a reduced role to win.

[exstatic]

Yeah, I’d rather the Spurs try to get Lauri Markannen.

Do you understand Danny Ainge at all? He will never take less than the established market price, which has been set at 5 FRPs.

Forget about Markannen..

[heyheymymy]

I'm celebrating tonight, Stephon Castle is a San Antonio Spur! Welcome to SA.

Castle took a limiting role at UCONN so people are looking at highlights of a restrained version of Castle but his HS tapes show him very comfortable in a primary ball handler and scoring role.

I think Spurs fans are going to be pleased.

[LeBowen]

Do you understand Danny Ainge at all? He will never take less than the established market price, which has been set at 5 FRPs.

Forget about Markannen..

Ainge also has 15 FRPs in the next 6 drafts.
He'll definitely want an established player with all-star upside.

Unless Markkanen refuses to extend, we're not getting him.

[gambit1990]

only watched a few seconds of him but neat :tu

spurs are over trae young?

[TrueSpursFan]

Do you understand Danny Ainge at all? He will never take less than the established market price, which has been set at 5 FRPs.

Forget about Markannen..

good thing is we just obtained 2 so we just need 3 more :lol

[Mr. Body]

As mentioned several times in the broadcast, UConn had a very good defense while Castle was briefly hurt. Once he got up and running, their defense was elite.

The potential with him and Wemby is tremendous. These are the lynchpins you dream of. This is the defensive guard I was desperate to get last draft (post-Wemby). He'll take work, but what's phenomenal is that he's already played high-level basketball. He won't have a lot to learn beyond the ins and outs of the NBA itself.

Of course there's personnel and rotations to work out, but this was the best pick in the draft and if he gets his shot in order, we probably have the steal of this weak draft, one of the few star players.

[CGD]

https://x.com/mikefinger/status/1806150404813537350

interesting tidbit

[Mr. Body]

I'm sure we'll post more about this as we go, but Castle was so important as the Huskies' POA defender, that at times UConn's perimeter defenders didn't always come help even when Castle was beat on a screen; they knew he could recover and still restrict the player. Obviously this will be more challenging as the players now are exceptional, but a strong defender likes this allows Wembanyama to stay home even more and cover other areas of the court.

[LeBowen]

Bucks 2.0

Can't deny major similarities in Castle-Devin-Wemby and Jrue-Middleton-Giannis trios.
If Castle and Devin live up to their potential, that is.

[baseline bum]

Cautiously optimistic on the pick. I know this draft was a minefield but I had him edging out Sheppard for my first choice prospect on the board so glad to get him.

[blackbucket]

When Castle was asked what defensive assignment he is looking forward to the most, he said Luka Doncic. You have to appreciate the moxy to want to guard the best offensive player in the league. Luka has a physical and experience advantage against Steph and he doesn’t care. If he fulfills his defensive expectation, we are good. If he adds a reliable jumper and 3, lookout!

[DAF86]

Hopefully he turns into Nephew 2.0 and comes right away shooting beans. There are hints of him having the same mental ... let's say "focus" as Nephew, if you know what I mean, tbh. :lol

[blackbucket]

For the record, B Wright does not get ANY credit for drafting Castle. That was a no brainer given picks 1 through 3 according to 90% of mocks and nearly 100% of every casual fan’s desire given 1 -3.

That foo needs to be given his pink slip.

[spurs10]

His defence looks very promising. Obviously the issue will be if his shot is respected and if he doesn't spread the floor can he stay on the floor?

[playblair]

spurstalk posters who doubted timvp had sources heres what he said prior to draft..........


4. Stephon Castle
The silence surrounding Castle is unsettling. Ever since he worked out for the Spurs, no source has been willing to go on record to even hint at how he played. he did so well that the franchise wants him to fall to No. 4 and instituted a gag order

[objective]

Imagine the anti-spacing vortex as Castle and Sochan share the court with Wemby, it will be like an astronomical spectacle as entire defenses swarm around Wemby like his own accretion disk.

Who needs shooting or good point guard play? Time to give Zollins another extension.

[scottspurs]

Wembanyama sounded super excited talking to Castle on the Phone after the pick! Can’t help but think he knew exactly what the spurs would do at 4 and signed off on it.

[rankingtear]

On par with their type, high level college role players with creation upside. No idea how it is going to work on offense, coaching staff got a lot of work to do.

[offset formation]

I never thought there was much doubt, but... you never know.

I think Spurs fans are gonna fucking love this guy. He's going to play hard-ass basketball and become a foundational piece.

I'm gonna cheer for him as loudly as humanly possible while making my point clear for posterity I think it was a poor choice. Yes he's super talented and an upgrade in many ways but damn, his drives in the NBA just won't have the same impact as they did in college when people sag on him

[Davidicus]

Wembanyama sounded super excited talking to Castle on the Phone after the pick! Can’t help but think he knew exactly what the spurs would do at 4 and signed off on it.

Link?

[TVI]

Lol the Dilly thread getting more traffic then the actual pick we keeping.
People love to complain…And to hear themselves talk.

[lefty]

Listening to his interview on NBA TV, I love his confidence

[spurs10]

Read this about his shooting in pre-draft workouts.

Grade: A

Castle was one the best defending guards in college hoops during his one year at UConn and showed a much improved 3-point shot during the pre-draft process. He has upside as an elite two-way player in the NBA and can help anchor the defense alongside Victor Wembanyama (https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/10094/).

[Splits]

maybe we could trade him for a 2057 FRP and a 2069 swap.

[Killakobe81]

I think he is a good pickup

[spursparker9]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twnBM6vwu5M

Grade C for SA picking Castle

[Mr. Body]

Lead UConn in scoring in the Final Four. So even not as a big deep threat he was still hugely productive.

[barakz21]

Saw on TikTok Wemby FaceTimed Castle. Starts with “It’s Victor”. I’m sure Wemby knows Castle knows who he is, but it’s still something when your franchise player introduces himself to rookies. Reminds me of all the Tom Brady stories where his teammates first met him during their rookie season say he always introduces himself with “ Hi, I’m Tom”, like they didn’t already know who he was.

[offset formation]

His defence looks very promising. Obviously the issue will be if his shot is respected and if he doesn't spread the floor can he stay on the floor?

Narrator: His shot won't be respected.

[sfernald]

Damn can’t believe they actually drafted my guy! Wemby got his #2 already!

[024]

Pick is alright given who was available but getting tired of "let's see if we can fix his shot" players.

[Light]

Link?



https://www.youtube.com/shorts/iK4RdA8tO64

[mystargtr34]

I wonder if drafting Castle opens up an avenue to put Keldon back in the starting lineup and resurrect his value.

Wemby - Collins
Sochan - Cissoko
Keldon - Champ
Vassell - Branham
Castle - Tre - Wesley

[heyheymymy]

going from Hurley to Pop

Castle is not afraid to WORK

[Vienna]

a Castle+Vassell back court means, that there needs to be more shooting from the forward spots. none of the current players will provide this. Tobias Harris would make even more sense in this situation.

[RC_Drunkford]

we're back to having an elite rim protector and perimeter defender. That has always been our M.O. when we won chips. Get this kid to work on his shot ASAP. He's one of the most polished players in this draft, which is why I wanted us to draft him, but a lot will depend on him developing a jump shot.

[exstatic]

For the record, B Wright does not get ANY credit for drafting Castle. That was a no brainer given picks 1 through 3 according to 90% of mocks and nearly 100% of every casual fan’s desire given 1 -3.

That foo needs to be given his pink slip.

Sure he does. He didn’t draft a Primo type reach this time.

[LeBowen]

The most important thing will be to see what's the plan for him early on.

As I said, I don't think they've given up on a big point guard experiment just because Jeremy couldn't do it.
Castle will surely do better in that role, we'll see if he can do good enough.

We'll have Tre as an insurance, but I think Castle starts the season at point.

Biggest concern roster wise is his fit with Jeremy. Even though I wanted Castle, I always said two of them can't share the floor. At least not early on.
Jeremy's skillset is more suited for a sixth man role, anyway.

Devin will also need to take more playmaking responsiblities and we all seem to forget about Wemby's playmaking.
His turnovers were high, but he averaged 4 assists as a clueless rookie on a team with horrible roster.

As I said after the draft, Bucks 2.0 could actually work because Wemby will surely be a better playmaker than Giannis, even if Castle isn't a pure point guard like Jrue.

What we do need asap if we're to make this roster functional are wing shooters.
While I can understand not wanting another project in the lottery, I don't agree with not trading down to get a proven shooter.
Season will be monumental failure if Jeremy, Keldon and Champ are our main wings.
I know PATFO very rarely makes aggressive moves, but they better have some trades up their sleeve.
Can't develop young players if the team isn't functional.

[John B]

Ninja Sean, Bruce, Danny/Kawhi and now Castle. Spurs always had the premier perimeter defender to lockdown the opponents POA and best perimeter guy. DJ, White all big defensive guards, so I wasn’t surprised. I’m so happy with this pick.

I would’ve liked Dilly very much. He’s so much like TP on how he breaks defenses with his array of putting up scores, so fast and has range. I still don’t know the rationale on trading him for a selection in 7 years from now. Watching RC smiling, giddy like a kid before Wright made the call, I thought he liked the pick so much. I’m still hoping there’s more, just building assets for a big trade ahead - someone like Markkanen I hope.

[r0drig0lac]

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/iK4RdA8tO64

Wemby is a fucking leader

[D-Robinson 50 fan]

Love this pick. At the very least Castle will be a solid NBA player for a good while. At his best he can be a multi time all star. in this draft that's solid value.

[LeBowen]

https://youtu.be/kPwoIinc_Ww?si=w_F44_nXMc5Ug94N

Really worth a watch.
His percentages are worse than his mechanics and that's the most encouranging thing.
He's no Jeremy who still has a fundamentally broken shot.

[Dejounte]

https://youtu.be/kPwoIinc_Ww?si=w_F44_nXMc5Ug94N

Really worth a watch.
His percentages are worse than his mechanics and that's the most encouranging thing.
He's no Jeremy who still has a fundamentally broken shot.

He’s no Jeremy with his handles either. He can go left and right. That alone is huge for his onball opportunities.

[barakz21]

Ninja Sean, Bruce, Danny/Kawhi and now Castle. Spurs always had the premier perimeter defender to lockdown the opponents POA and best perimeter guy. DJ, White all big defensive guards, so I wasn’t surprised. I’m so happy with this pick.

I would’ve liked Dilly very much. He’s so much like TP on how he breaks defenses with his array of putting up scores, so fast and has range. I still don’t know the rationale on trading him for a selection in 7 years from now. Watching RC smiling, giddy like a kid before Wright made the call, I thought he liked the pick so much. I’m still hoping there’s more, just building assets for a big trade ahead - someone like Markkanen I hope.

I didn’t become a Spurs fan until 01, so I’d appreciate the history lesson. Was Sean a good defender? I only ever knew Sean as the #2 man on those DRob led Spurs teams. When I became a fan, I figure Sean was like a 15-18ppg scorer who would’ve been a #3 man on a legit contender. Again, I’d appreciate the history lesson!

[LeBowen]

He’s no Jeremy with his handles either. He can go left and right. That alone is huge for his onball opportunities.

I see no reason to believe he's not a future point guard project.
As I said in the previous post, we're underestimating Wemby's playmaking and we know PATFO are all in on sharing the ball.

Both his shot and handles look way more ready than what DJ had in his rookie year.
As the guy in that video said, if he could become a Fox level shooter, he's got some serious potential.
For reference, Fox shot 32% from deep on 3.8 attempts per game in his first 6 seasons and jumped to 37% on 8 attempts this season.

I'd say his absolute best case scenario would be somewhere between Jrue and Jimmy.
Both of them get to the rim by bullying defenders, not just missmatches.
First step should be developing a reliable mid-range, FT line pull up would go a long way when the defense has to focus on Wemby.

[TrainOfThought5]

I wonder if drafting Castle opens up an avenue to put Keldon back in the starting lineup and resurrect his value.

Wemby - Collins
Sochan - Cissoko
Keldon - Champ
Vassell - Branham
Castle - Tre - Wesley

that’s an absolutely depressing bench.

[kobyz]

Branham have to start now next to Castle instead of Jones

[LeBowen]

that’s an absolutely depressing bench.

We'll see how things go today.

We need a veteran for cheap or in free agency. Barnes, Harris, Batum, you get the point.
Then get a another reliable wing in a trade. Cam Johnson would be ideal.
And another shooter with #35 today.

Castle-Devin-Cam-Barnes-Wemby would look way better, have good spacing and defense. Something to build on.
Tre-Branham-Champ-Jeremy would be decent enough of a bench. (I don't want to see Collins ever again, get a backup big.)

West is brutal and we're not making the playoffs.
But there are also way too many teams that are going to blatantly tank, so we're not getting into top5 odds with Wemby averaging 25/12/5 or something.
We need to start building back the winning culture and give young players an optimal envoriment to develop. Which is actually competing.

[Ice009]

I didn’t become a Spurs fan until 01, so I’d appreciate the history lesson. Was Sean a good defender? I only ever knew Sean as the #2 man on those DRob led Spurs teams. When I became a fan, I figure Sean was like a 15-18ppg scorer who would’ve been a #3 man on a legit contender. Again, I’d appreciate the history lesson!

Sean had the defensive potential. It wasn't until Pop got a hold of him that he really started playing great defense.

I'm not sure how correctly I am remembering it as I was very young then, but he was very good in the 1999 season, and in the 1999 playoffs, Sean spent time guarding KG (can't remember who else was in the Timberwolves back then as to who his primary assignment was), Kobe in round 2, Portland's loaded stack of guards and forwards in round 3, and then Allan Houston and Latrell Sprewell (I loved both of these guys as I always wanted them both on the Spurs) in the finals. He went through a gauntlet of great players he had to guard during that playoff run, and did a pretty good job on all of them. All of this while playing with a failing kidney.

I think if Pop was able to coach him earlier in his career, he would have been known as a great defender as he didn't really start playing great defense until Pop was his coach.

[CGD]

a Castle+Vassell back court means, that there needs to be more shooting from the forward spots. none of the current players will provide this. Tobias Harris would make even more sense in this situation.

Yup, I think he’s the target on FA. Him and Gary Trent Jr who shot 40% from 3.

[Truckules]

I see no reason to believe he's not a future point guard project.
As I said in the previous post, we're underestimating Wemby's playmaking and we know PATFO are all in on sharing the ball.

Both his shot and handles look way more ready than what DJ had in his rookie year.
As the guy in that video said, if he could become a Fox level shooter, he's got some serious potential.
For reference, Fox shot 32% from deep on 3.8 attempts per game in his first 6 seasons and jumped to 37% on 8 attempts this season.

I'd say his absolute best case scenario would be somewhere between Jrue and Jimmy.
Both of them get to the rim by bullying defenders, not just missmatches.
First step should be developing a reliable mid-range, FT line pull up would go a long way when the defense has to focus on Wemby.

I actually see a lot of Demar in his offensive game with how good his footwork is and how he likes to play off two feet around the basket. Demar on offense and Jrue on defense would be like a top 15% outcome for him IMO. If he can be an average 3pt shooter on top of that, he'd clearly be the second star next to Wemby.

[Davidicus]

Dejounte Murray 6’5” 180lb
Stephon Castle 6’6” 215lb

Damn, I didn’t realize Castle had an inch and 35lb on DJM. Who knows exact measurements, but I just assumed Castle was 6’4”ish based on the way he moves on defense. We’re in for a treat!

[Mr. Body]

Man, I'm pumped as hell to get Castle. He has one of the highest ceilings in the draft, or one of them, he has a very solid floor. The complexity of what we can run on offense went up, our defense is set to greatly improve.

What I keep enjoying right now is the fact that he lead UConn in scoring during the Final Four. It was a combined attack, and Newton beat him one game, but he was the workhorse. Not only was he the key exterior defender, he was getting it done on the other end.

[BatManu20]

Man, I'm pumped as hell to get Castle. He has one of the highest ceilings in the draft, or one of them, he has a very solid floor. The complexity of what we can run on offense went up, our defense is set to greatly improve.

What I keep enjoying right now is the fact that he lead UConn in scoring during the Final Four. It was a combined attack, and Newton beat him one game, but he was the workhorse. Not only was he the key exterior defender, he was getting it done on the other end.

Seconded. He’s been my guy in this draft for months now. Super glad he’s a Spur tbh. Think we look back at this pick in 5 years once he’s developed his shot and wonder how he fell to us at 4 tbh.

[BatManu20]

Wemby seems to like the pick.


“I am very happy about this pick. (Stephon Castle) is one of the most NBA Ready players in this Draft and a very good person too. We have been paying a lot of attention to him at the Spurs” — Wemby during a press conference at the Federation of French Basketball in Paris. @TrashTalk_fr

[BSfromTX]

Parker and KL didn't have great jumpers when drafted. I bet this kid develops his jumper. He definitely can defend and is big and strong for a PG.

[Russ]

Parker and KL didn't have great jumpers when drafted. I bet this kid develops his jumper. He definitely can defend and is big and strong for a PG.

He's comfortable playing under hard coaching and his teams win -- that's huge.

But his HEB commercials will be cringeworthy.

[z0sa]

Wembanyama sounded super excited talking to Castle on the Phone after the pick! Can’t help but think he knew exactly what the spurs would do at 4 and signed off on it.

Castle is still exciting. Great pick, all things considered.

It's just much, much less exciting since it's obvious we will be throwing 24-25 away already. Boring, losing season ahead where watching the guys grow won't even be that entertaining since we don't even have our "core" yet, again, most likely.

[spurraider21]

Castle wasnt in my top tier of prospects, but he was atop tier 2. said all along id be content with getting him at 4, and that hasnt changed. its pretty remarkable just how many things he is good at. its been said before, but the shooting will make or break him. taking him at 4 is absolutely reliant on him improving his shot, and he's pretty far away. not just as far as his accuracy, but even his confidence and willingness to take them

[Russ]

Castle wasnt in my top tier of prospects, but he was atop tier 2. said all along id be content with getting him at 4, and that hasnt changed. its pretty remarkable just how many things he is good at. its been said before, but the shooting will make or break him. taking him at 4 is absolutely reliant on him improving his shot, and he's pretty far away. not just as far as his accuracy, but even his confidence and willingness to take them

Castle seems more confident and willing to take threes in bigger games -- that might be a good sign.

In the first four games of the NCAA tournament, Castle took only 8 three attempts and hit -- horrifically -- only one. 1 of 8.

In the last two (Final Four games), he took ten and hit three. Not great but better.

At least it indicates he's not scared of the moment.

[DAF86]

So what's his schedule? Does he take a vacation now, does hit the gym immediately? When is Summer League happening? He better be taking a thousand shots per day, tbh. I want to see him take spot ups and pullup shots without hesitation, tbh.

[Obstructed_View]

I didn’t become a Spurs fan until 01, so I’d appreciate the history lesson. Was Sean a good defender? I only ever knew Sean as the #2 man on those DRob led Spurs teams. When I became a fan, I figure Sean was like a 15-18ppg scorer who would’ve been a #3 man on a legit contender. Again, I’d appreciate the history lesson!
Sean was an elite defender. He was one of the best players in the country when he was in college. The prediction when he and Robinson were paired was that the Spurs would win 50 games a year for the next decade.

Sean was a great defender, a great teammate and a great citizen of San Antonio, where I lived at the time. He was never consistently aggressive as an offensive player, and was unable to relieve pressure from Robinson in the playoffs.

[BatManu20]

1806202061387677724

[Obstructed_View]

Sean had the defensive potential. It wasn't until Pop got a hold of him that he really started playing great defense.

I'm not sure how correctly I am remembering it as I was very young then, but he was very good in the 1999 season, and in the 1999 playoffs, Sean spent time guarding KG (can't remember who else was in the Timberwolves back then as to who his primary assignment was), Kobe in round 2, Portland's loaded stack of guards and forwards in round 3, and then Allan Houston and Latrell Sprewell (I loved both of these guys as I always wanted them both on the Spurs) in the finals. He went through a gauntlet of great players he had to guard during that playoff run, and did a pretty good job on all of them. All of this while playing with a failing kidney.

I think if Pop was able to coach him earlier in his career, he would have been known as a great defender as he didn't really start playing great defense until Pop was his coach.

This is completely wrong. Popovich was an assistant coach to Larry Brown for the first two years of Sean's career.

[Ice009]

This is completely wrong. Popovich was an assistant coach to Larry Brown for the first two years of Sean's career.

Maybe I'm wrong with Pop working with him, but I don't recall Sean being a super defender until Pop became the head coach?

By the way, did Stephon have family at the draft? I didn't see any in the draft footage I watched.

[Obstructed_View]

Maybe I'm wrong with Pop working with him, but I don't recall Sean being a super defender until Pop became the head coach?

By the way, did Stephon have family at the draft? I didn't see any in the draft footage I watched.

Sean was always a top defender. Look at his advanced stats. Look at his best defensive seasons. Look at his all-defense votes. Those came before Pop was head coach. I lived in the city and watched all the games. I'm pretty sure I'm right about this.

I don't remember seeing his family either, now you mention it. Was he sitting at someone else's table? He had Hurley up there interviewing with him instead of family, right?

[RC_Drunkford]

Castle wasnt in my top tier of prospects, but he was atop tier 2. said all along id be content with getting him at 4, and that hasnt changed. its pretty remarkable just how many things he is good at. its been said before, but the shooting will make or break him. taking him at 4 is absolutely reliant on him improving his shot, and he's pretty far away. not just as far as his accuracy, but even his confidence and willingness to take them

One thing about Castle is that he played a reduced role in college. There's tape of him making deep 3s and also shooting off the dribble. Is he good enough at it? Probably not, but the fact that his form looks good and that he can make those shots shows you the upside. They should start developing his midrange first if you ask me.

[exstatic]

So what's his schedule? Does he take a vacation now, does hit the gym immediately? When is Summer League happening? He better be taking a thousand shots per day, tbh. I want to see him take spot ups and pullup shots without hesitation, tbh.

Pull ups are a different skill set, and not one easily mastered. You have to arrest your forward momentum while gauging the shot.

I’ll settle for 35-36% on catch and shoots year one.

[spurraider21]

One thing about Castle is that he played a reduced role in college. There's tape of him making deep 3s and also shooting off the dribble. Is he good enough at it? Probably not, but the fact that his form looks good and that he can make those shots shows you the upside. They should start developing his midrange first if you ask me.
the percentage is the percentage. in high school he was something around 30-31% from 3 as well iirc, and thats a shorter line

[Ice009]

Sean was always a top defender. Look at his advanced stats. Look at his best defensive seasons. Look at his all-defense votes. Those came before Pop was head coach. I lived in the city and watched all the games. I'm pretty sure I'm right about this.

I don't remember seeing his family either, now you mention it. Was he sitting at someone else's table? He had Hurley up there interviewing with him instead of family, right?

You are probably right, then. I wasn't able to watch the games like you were. I'm mostly going by what I remember, and that's probably based on the team defense and maybe lumping Sean into that. He may very well have been a great individual defender his whole career like you've mentioned.
I recall his nickname around '99 used to be ninja or something along those lines? If so, when did he get that, and what was it based on? What that anything to do with his defense?

Yeah, Dan Hurley went up with him, so I was wondering what is going on. I don't recall seeing any family members or even him mentioning any during the few interviews I saw. So I wanted to know what was going on there, or if maybe they just didn't show any on camera.

[Uriel]

Read this about his shooting in pre-draft workouts.

Grade: A

Castle was one the best defending guards in college hoops during his one year at UConn and showed a much improved 3-point shot during the pre-draft process. He has upside as an elite two-way player in the NBA and can help anchor the defense alongside Victor Wembanyama (https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/10094/).
I think that’s referring to the draft combine, where he had one of the best shooting performances of all the prospects in attendance.

[Knoxxx]

1806202061387677724

The non interviews of the night fit this mold exactly.

[Obstructed_View]

You are probably right, then. I wasn't able to watch the games like you were. I'm mostly going by what I remember, and that's probably based on the team defense and maybe lumping Sean into that. He may very well have been a great individual defender his whole career like you've mentioned.
I recall his nickname around '99 used to be ninja or something along those lines? If so, when did he get that, and what was it based on? What that anything to do with his defense?

Yeah, Dan Hurley went up with him, so I was wondering what is going on. I don't recall seeing any family members or even him mentioning any during the few interviews I saw. So I wanted to know what was going on there, or if maybe they just didn't show any on camera.

Ninja was used briefly, but it never really caught on and was abandoned pretty quickly as I recall. Jay Howard even used it during games a few times.

[bluebellmaniac]

that’s an absolutely depressing bench.
Well, we have like 50 draft picks in the next 5 to 7 yrs to upgrade our depth, so there's that.

[rankingtear]

Avery on CBS : "what i've been told projecting forward they actually think he could be another dejounte murray".

[heyheymymy]

DeJruete Holiday

[Mr. Body]

Avery on CBS : "what i've been told projecting forward they actually think he could be another dejounte murray".

While I get what they're saying, I wish they'd stop with this comparison. Yeah, Murray is within the Spurs context. It's what fans understand and in shadow he sort of fits the mold. Maybe in the weeds, but they're pretty different players despite being 'defensive point guards.' Murray was a finesse guard with extraordinary length who took a while to get up to speed, kind of a playground basketballer who made good. Castle's play style is very different, even on defense. Dude is big and strong for the point position and isn't really finesse. His playing mold really is Jimmy Butler, Jrue Holiday like at least in style. Murray is a rapier, Castle is a war club.

[Dejounte]

Chunky and average speed like Jrue. A taller Tre Jones. Has the physicality of Jimmy Butler on offense.

What you’d hope with any pick drafted in the top 5 is that they’d have a ceiling of a player who eventually deserves a max contract. Castle’s got most of the tools, but let’s see if in the next couple years he gets the other ones.

There’s a lot to like in the tape. One would be fooled after watching it and think that he was a stat stuffer. He wasn’t, and that probably doesn’t matter. I hated him as a prospect in the beginning as much as I hated Risacher (sounds impossible, I know), but that changed after putting more focus into what I was seeing. His best attribute right now that makes me believe he has strong upside is his handle. It’s not stylish or anything like that, but when you factor in that he is strong in other areas while having that kind of ballhandling skill… that’s special.

[Eaglenole2002]

Putting offensive spacing aside… how much will having Castle defending lead ball handlers make Sochan better defensively now that he can focus on forwards.

[John B]

Avery on CBS : "what i've been told projecting forward they actually think he could be another dejounte murray".

Dejounte picks with his length, often gambles for a steal. Castle body up his opponent, pushing, shoving smothering defense. I’d see more Kawhi than DJ. The moment LeSoft shooked his head seeing Kawhi back on court? Between Castle and Sochan, it’s going to be fun watching Luka whining to the officials :lol

[exstatic]

the percentage is the percentage. in high school he was something around 30-31% from 3 as well iirc, and thats a shorter line

That’s not even remotely true. Two guys can both shoot 31%. One of them has a bad shot selection, and the other has MKG form. That not even remotely the same. There’s a lot more nuance than what the percentages are.

[LeBowen]

That’s not even remotely true. Two guys can both shoot 31%. One of them has a bad shot selection, and the other has MKG form. That not even remotely the same. There’s a lot more nuance than what the percentages are.

It's not even just about the shot selection or volume, but the kind of shots the defense allows.
31% while taking shots off the dribble and contested is better than 35% when you're left wide open and dared to shoot.

Castle's mechanics are solid, I expect him to at least have a reliable mid-range pull up in two years or so.

[Knoxxx]

Dejounte picks with his length, often gambles for a steal. Castle body up his opponent, pushing, shoving smothering defense. I’d see more Kawhi than DJ. The moment LeSoft shooked his head seeing Kawhi back on court? Between Castle and Sochan, it’s going to be fun watching Luka whining to the officials :lol

That's what I was thinking, the days of Sochan guarding SGA and Luka are not over at all, he just now has a competent rotation partner for that effort.

Also which backcourt would you rather have, Castle/Vastle or White/Holiday? Maybe today you choose the latter and I don't ridicule you, but that won't be the case for long once Castle gets past his rookie learning curve.

Another niche piece I like is Barlow when I think of annoying defense. He had the length and mobility to bother the Durant jump shot as well as I've seen. The perfect roster has role players that can help save your bacon from game to game over the wide variety of matchups we have to be able to defend. Barlow also defended Giannis way better than Sochan, who was way outclassed as a big in that matchup. My anxiety level spiked when I had to watch Sochan on Giannis for a stretch.

[Maddog]

OK
Although I thought he'd be the pick, I'm less than enthusiastic. However would I have been enthusiastic about anyone form this class available at 4? I think that's the bigger question and part of why the Spurs traded out of 8.

Being picked top 5/10 is no guarantee of success with lots of flops out there. Add in a weak draft- I think statistically odds are not great that he becomes more than a role player.
I will admit I've watched very little of him.
Several areas of concern- he can't shoot.
Conference and NCAA tournament was 4-22 from 3. Yeah not a lot of shots per game but that's not great.
FT not bad at 19-25 76% not awesome.
Great defense so I heard- well as someone pointed out earlier- he' provides great physical D against college kids.

Fingers crossed

[Mr. Body]

Putting offensive spacing aside… how much will having Castle defending lead ball handlers make Sochan better defensively now that he can focus on forwards.

I look forward to seeing. With Castle potentially strong on POA and Wembanyama as anchor, Sochan can sort of rove, coming for doubles or acting as a safety at times, which I think is one of his stronger suits. When he can wreak havoc more aggressively.

[Mr. Body]

OK
Although I thought he'd be the pick, I'm less than enthusiastic. However would I have been enthusiastic about anyone form this class available at 4? I think that's the bigger question and part of why the Spurs traded out of 8.

Being picked top 5/10 is no guarantee of success with lots of flops out there. Add in a weak draft- I think statistically odds are not great that he becomes more than a role player.
I will admit I've watched very little of him.
Several areas of concern- he can't shoot.
Conference and NCAA tournament was 4-22 from 3. Yeah not a lot of shots per game but that's not great.
FT not bad at 19-25 76% not awesome.
Great defense so I heard- well as someone pointed out earlier- he' provides great physical D against college kids.

Fingers crossed

You say 'several areas of concern' but list only one.

I get registering a worry about his shot. I'm not particularly worried. He'll be like Kawhi in being in the gym all the time working on it. College players have reduced amounts of time they can work with coaches. Often this time is used on sets, defense, other areas. Now, he's allowed to work with coaches constantly.

The rest of the package is all there. Gone underrated is his BBIQ. This was already great in high school, and he's followed with one of the best coaches and that coach's system we've seen in college for a while. The UConn system is brutal to guard, it has so many variations and reads that require attentive, smart players to know when to cut, ghost screens, drift, hit cutting players, etc., and not many guys can do this.

[RC_Drunkford]

OK
Although I thought he'd be the pick, I'm less than enthusiastic. However would I have been enthusiastic about anyone form this class available at 4? I think that's the bigger question and part of why the Spurs traded out of 8.

Being picked top 5/10 is no guarantee of success with lots of flops out there. Add in a weak draft- I think statistically odds are not great that he becomes more than a role player.
I will admit I've watched very little of him.
Several areas of concern- he can't shoot.
Conference and NCAA tournament was 4-22 from 3. Yeah not a lot of shots per game but that's not great.
FT not bad at 19-25 76% not awesome.
Great defense so I heard- well as someone pointed out earlier- he' provides great physical D against college kids.

Fingers crossed

shooting is literally his only flaw and there have been some flashes. He's the most complete player in the entire draft.

[BatManu20]

Agreed.

pszKAevf8NE

[SpursDynasty85]

I was not too excited about this pick up but looking at the whole picture this man was meant for the Spurs. He plays a methodical brand of ball, he is big and can match up with most and won’t back down, he can play a little PG, he is humble and seems to have his head on straight, and he just got through winning the NCAA championship playing alongside Clingan. Meant to be.

[z0sa]

Better be a starter over Tre fucking Jones or Julian Champagnie. If he's the seventh man off the bench and Tre of all people is suddenly guaranteed a starting slot, we're rooting for a team coached by fools.

[CGD]

Avery Johnson said on the CBS draft show the other day that the Spurs see him in the mold of Dejounte. I think that probably forecloses any dealing to get the actually Dejounte back I would think.

[DR_Admiral]

If he puts in the work, there's no reason he can't develop into a respectable outside shooter. I love that the Spurs want to be big at point guard. If they can surround Wemby with lengthy defenders to contest 3s and shut down passing lanes, with Wemby controlling the paint, Spurs will be a defensive beast of a team.

[Maddog]

It's big flaw.
I also wonder how his defense will translate.

To some extent I'm playing devil's advocate. I wonder where he would have fallen in last years draft.

[Mr. Body]

It's big flaw.
I also wonder how his defense will translate.

To some extent I'm playing devil's advocate. I wonder where he would have fallen in last years draft.

Realistically, either him or Anthony Black at 6 after Wemby, BMiller, Scoot, Twin, Twin.

To be a homer, I think he will be better than Scoot just straightaway. Miller will be a better scorer but the rest of the game we'll see. The Twins are exceptional but even worse shooters, so may require a lot of building around.

[Seventyniner]

Avery Johnson said on the CBS draft show the other day that the Spurs see him in the mold of Dejounte. I think that probably forecloses any dealing to get the actually Dejounte back I would think.

That might close off a trade for a starting PG altogether, including Young and Garland.

[Uriel]

Watching the post-draft interviews with Wright, he mentions that the team has been following Castle since high school and that they saw things there that he didn’t show in UConn because of their system, implying that he still has untapped upside. He also suggests that he believes he can improve on his shooting because he’s a hard worker, and that those types are the ones that usually manage to fix their weaknesses.

[Mr. Body]

Watching the post-draft interviews with Wright, he mentions that the team has been following Castle since high school and that they saw things there that he didn’t show in UConn because of their system, implying that he still has untapped upside. He also suggests that he believes he can improve on his shooting because he’s a hard worker, and that those types are the ones that usually manage to fix their weaknesses.

He's similar to Kawhi in having that bad jumpshot and not being charismatic but being hard workers. Hopefully it ends there.

[Obstructed_View]

That might close off a trade for a starting PG altogether, including Young and Garland.
Nobody believes that the Spurs have any interest in a point guard, do they? The last traditional pg the Spurs had was...
...
...
...Strickland?

[scott]

Really fucking excited about this kid. I think he'll shoot better than his college stats suggest.

[heyheymymy]

Ready for the Castle Wemby era!

Area 5,1

The Alien Castle

[exstatic]

It's big flaw.
I also wonder how his defense will translate.

To some extent I'm playing devil's advocate. I wonder where he would have fallen in last years draft.

It’s actually not that big a flaw, and one of the more fixable ones a player can have. Defense is a bitch to fix, even if you have the tools. See: Branham, Malaki. Really can’t fix size issues. Court vision can’t really be taught.

[exstatic]

Realistically, either him or Anthony Black at 6 after Wemby, BMiller, Scoot, Twin, Twin.

To be a homer, I think he will be better than Scoot just straightaway. Miller will be a better scorer but the rest of the game we'll see. The Twins are exceptional but even worse shooters, so may require a lot of building around.

I’d pick him right after miller. His game is more complete, and his shot less broken than the twins or Scoot.