Chris Paul signs with the San Antonio Spurs
Looking back on his career, it’s easy to forget Chris Paul’s tenure in Golden State. Paul averaged just 9.2 points, 3.9 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game with the Warriors last season. The combination was always going to be a bit odd, as the Warriors play at a high pace and shoot a lot of threes, while Paul wants to slow the game down, play pick and roll, etc. And after playing with veterans like Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins, Paul will now look to lead a young team in San Antonio.
Shortly after being released by the Warriors, Paul signed a one-year, $11 million-plus deal with the San Antonio Spurs. Paul will immediately become a mentor to Tre Jones and Stephon Castle in the backcourt, and of course, future All-NBA center Victor Wembanyama. Last season, San Antonio recorded the fifth-highest frequency of plays to the roll man from the pick-and-roll (6.7%) in the league, but ranked just 24th in points per possession from that play (1.07). I expect a lot of two-man action with Paul and Wemby, and efficiency should improve significantly as well. When Steven Adams played alongside Paul in Oklahoma City in 2019, he made about 69% of his shots as a roll man and is not on the same level as Wembanyama. And in his rookie year, Wembanyama was much better when Tre Jones was on the court for San Antonio. So you can imagine what he can accomplish in his second year not only with Jones, but also with one of the best point guards of all time.
I don’t expect San Antonio to suddenly be working toward the playoffs or anything in 2025. But they’ll be fun to watch and the trajectory is definitely pointing upward.
Jonas Valanciunas moves to the Washington Wizards
After trading Daniel Gafford at the deadline this season, the Washington Wizards clearly had an opportunity for a center upgrade. After the Gafford trade, they often had Kyle Kuzma play at the five. But Washington immediately filled the position in free agency, signing Jonas Valanciunas on Sunday for three years and $30 million. In three seasons with the Pelicans, Valanciunas averaged 14.6 points, 10.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. Per minute, Valanciunas has always been one of the league’s better rebounders, although his defensive weaknesses often limited his playing time. During his time in New Orleans, he averaged just over 26 minutes per game. When fully healthy, one of the Pelicans’ favorite lineups featured Zion Williamson at power forward and Larry Nance at center, since JoVal often didn’t finish games. Still, he only missed 11 regular-season games in his three seasons in New Orleans, and suddenly the Pelicans’ frontcourt looks pretty weak. With Andre Drummond returning to the 76ers, the best available centers the Pelicans are considering are Isaiah Hartenstein, Mo Wagner and Goga Bitadze. However, with Nance traded to Atlanta as part of the Dejounte Murray deal, two of New Orleans’ top three frontcourt players are now gone.
For Washington, strengthening the interior has clearly been a focus. Only Charlotte averaged fewer rebounds per game than the Wizards in 2023-24 (41.0), while their rebound conversion rate of 55.9% was the seventh-lowest in the league. With his size and strength, Valanciunas can be an interesting complement to second overall pick Alexandre Sarr for Washington.
