Pounding the Rock

1 day ago | poundingtherock.com | Jeje Gomez |Marilyn Dubinski |Mark Barrington |Jacob Douglas

David Banks-Imagn Images Marilyn Dubinski: It will likely depend on where the Spurs feel they need the most help not just now, but in future seasons as well. Dylan Harper seems to be the consensus no. 2 after Flagg, and I’d be all over that pick if they hadn’t traded for Fox, but will he be redundant with Fox and Castle? The same could be said of VJ Edgecombe. Then again, they also need a backup PG. They also desperately need size, but there is a lack of big men projected to go that high.

2 days ago | poundingtherock.com | Marilyn Dubinski

David Banks-USA TODAY Sports For the second time in three seasons, the Spurs experienced a rise in the NBA Draft Lottery. Their pick from the Atlanta Hawks fell right where expected at 14th, but as the teams kept getting called, the Spurs’ own pick was nowhere to be found. As 8th passed by without the Spurs being called, it became clear that they would be receiving a top 4 pick, which is a massive rise.

2 days ago | poundingtherock.com | Mark Barrington

Photos by Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images Welcome to the Game Thread. Veterans of the Game Thread know how we do things around here, but for all you newbies we have a few rules. Our community guidelines apply and basically say be cool, no personal attacks, don’t troll and don’t swear too much.

2 days ago | poundingtherock.com | Marilyn Dubinski

Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images For the sixth (and hopefully final) year in a row, the Spurs are a part of the NBA Draft Lottery. It has certainly paid off, as all but one of their five lottery picks — Devin Vassell, Jeremy Sochan, Victor Wembanyama (ROY) and Stephon Castle (ROY) — are still with the Spurs and have the potential to be long-term pieces for them, and this year they have two lottery picks in a very deep class, headlined by Duke forward Cooper Flagg.

2 days ago | poundingtherock.com | Jeph Duarte

Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images When Sunday morning started, all four series were 2-1. Early in the afternoon, the Oklahoma City Thunder tied up their series against the Denver Nuggets. The Thunder are the youngest team in the league and the Nuggets are the 2022-2023 NBA champions. In fact, both Western Conference match-ups feature younger squads against experienced teams. Minnesota is currently leading their series against the 2021-2022 NBA champion Golden State Warriors.