In a 30-part series leading up to the start of the 2021-22 National Basketball Association season, we will take a look at each NBA franchise from a fantasy perspective. The 27th team we will review is the San Antonio Spurs.
A time of transition is a little strange for the San Antonio Spurs. For 22 straight seasons from 1998 to 2019, San Antonio made the playoffs, and during that time San Antonio also won five NBA Finals (1999, 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2014). Among the stars on the Spurs over that time were David Robinson, Kawhi Leonard, Tony Parker, Tim Duncan, and Manu Ginobili.
Like any major professional sports franchise, teams have to go down, before once again going up. That is what the Spurs are currently facing.
The Spurs star player when it comes to fantasy is Dejounte Murray, who is 12th among shooting guards, and 11th among point guards. Last season Murray had 1934 fantasy points*. He had a field goal percentage of .453, free throw percentage of .791, 63 three-pointers, 1051 points, 473 rebounds, 363 assists, 101 steals and 117 turnovers.
In what was a complete surprise to many, Keldon Johnson was named to the American Olympic team that won the gold medal in men’s basketball. Johnson was chosen over Julius Randle of the New York Knicks even though Randle had a staggering 1317 more fantasy points than Johnson this past year. It does not take a brain surgeon to figure out the primary reason why Johnson was chosen to the American Olympic team is because United States head coach Gregg Popovich was familiar with Johnson as he coaches him in San Antonio. Johnson is in the middle of the pack among small forwards and power forwards.
Among the other Spurs worth considering in the lower to later rounds are center Jakob Poeltl, shooting guard Derrick White, and small forward Doug McDermott. A native of Grand Forks, North Dakota, McDermott has spent the last three seasons with the Indiana Pacers. All three players had career highs in points per game in 2020-21. McDermott had 13.6 points per game, White had 15.4 points per game, and Poeltl had 8.6 points per game.
*Please note: To calculate NBA fantasy points for point guards, shooting guards and small forwards, I use the formula (3PTM+Points+Rebounds+Assists+Steals-Turnovers). For power forwards and centers, I use the formula (Points+Rebounds+Assists+Steals+Blocks-Turnovers).
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