The NBA has fined the Cleveland Cavaliers $100,000 for sitting healthy All-Stars Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley for a Nov. 12 road game against the Miami Heat. The NBA announced the fine Tuesday, citing the league’s player participation policy.
The NBA implemented the player participation policy prior to the 2023-24 season to address stars not playing in games when healthy. The league has been plagued for years by teams sitting their healthy stars for regular-season games, denying paying customers of the show they expected to see when they purchased tickets.
Heat fans did not get to see Evan Mobley and Donovan Mitchell play on Nov. 12.
Jason Miller via Getty Images
These scenarios are particularly egregious when road teams rest stars as it may be the only opportunity for fans in the host city to see those players. For the Heat, the Nov. 12 game was one of two home games against the Cavaliers this season.
While targeting nationally televised games, which this was not, the player participation policy also specifically addresses situations in which teams rest multiple star players.
“Teams must manage their roster to ensure that no more than one star player is unavailable for the same game,” the policy states.
The player participation policy includes an escalating fine system. The first violation of the policy comes with a $100,000 fine. A second violation triggers a $250,000 fine. Each subsequent violation comes with a $1 million fine.
The Cavaliers are presumably at risk of increased fines if they violate the policy again this season.
The NBA has fined the Cleveland Cavaliers $100,000 for sitting healthy All-Stars Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley for a Nov. 12 road game against the Miami Heat. The NBA announced the fine Tuesday, citing the league’s player participation policy.
The NBA implemented the player participation policy prior to the 2023-24 season to address stars not playing in games when healthy. The league has been plagued for years by teams sitting their healthy stars for regular-season games, denying paying customers of the show they expected to see when they purchased tickets.
Heat fans did not get to see Evan Mobley and Donovan Mitchell play on Nov. 12.
Jason Miller via Getty Images
These scenarios are particularly egregious when road teams rest stars as it may be the only opportunity for fans in the host city to see those players. For the Heat, the Nov. 12 game was one of two home games against the Cavaliers this season.
While targeting nationally televised games, which this was not, the player participation policy also specifically addresses situations in which teams rest multiple star players.
“Teams must manage their roster to ensure that no more than one star player is unavailable for the same game,” the policy states.
The player participation policy includes an escalating fine system. The first violation of the policy comes with a $100,000 fine. A second violation triggers a $250,000 fine. Each subsequent violation comes with a $1 million fine.
The Cavaliers are presumably at risk of increased fines if they violate the policy again this season.
Amid all the Western Conference drama — the gambling scandal that rocked the Blazers, the Mavericks firing their general manager, a disgruntled Ja Morant on the Grizzlies, the Pelicans axing their coach and another atrocious start for the Kings — the ]
But how long can the Clippers bank on Leonard being healthy? It is the same old Clippers existence, one that they have lived for as long as Leonard has been on the roster. And we are going on seven years now.
Every year we think it is time to write off the Clippers, and every year they pull us back in. As we said, they closed last season on an 18-3 stretch that convinced us they may be bound for another conference finals, where they peaked as a franchise in 2021. We at least figured them as fringe contenders each year.
This year feels different, and not just because they have endured their worst start of the Leonard era. It is impossible to think that, as Harden marches toward his 37th birthday and Leonard is a well-worn 34, they can together find the magic required to win four playoff rounds. Remember, this is James Harden, who, with two chances to defeat the 76ers on the final possession of Monday’s game, missed badly twice.
No, this is a team going nowhere. Fast. Or slow. It has taken awhile for us to get here, but we are definitely here: The Clippers are no longer contenders. They are firmly in the class of pretenders.
And it is not like they can tank to the bottom of the standings, as they do not control their own first-round pick for the next four years, owing the next two to Oklahoma City and two more to Philadelphia.
That lack of draft assets also makes it impossible for the Clippers to enter any serious trade conversations for a superstar. For all the talent the Clippers do have, the Bucks are not about to take Los Angeles’ bloated salaries, without much draft compensation, in exchange for Giannis Antetokounmpo.
More likely, the Clippers would have to assume some risk to make improvements, taking on another team’s trouble. The oft-injured Anthony Davis may soon become available in Dallas. Morant is displeased in Memphis. Atlanta is playing awfully well without Trae Young. The Kings may host a fire sale. And Zion Williamson is floating out there in New Orleans. There is talent to be had if the Clips would take a swing.
But do any of those names inspire confidence that they could solve what ails these Clippers, given how much they would have to give up — likely in a three-team deal — just to acquire any available star player?
No, the Clippers are stuck. And we have barely mentioned the allegations of salary-cap circumvention against them, for which they are currently being investigated by the league. That is but one of their problems now. The Clips are the Clips again, their outlook in the standings as dire as it is for the future.
Amid all the Western Conference drama — the gambling scandal that rocked the Blazers, the Mavericks firing their general manager, a disgruntled Ja Morant on the Grizzlies, the Pelicans axing their coach and another atrocious start for the Kings — the ]
But how long can the Clippers bank on Leonard being healthy? It is the same old Clippers existence, one that they have lived for as long as Leonard has been on the roster. And we are going on seven years now.
Every year we think it is time to write off the Clippers, and every year they pull us back in. As we said, they closed last season on an 18-3 stretch that convinced us they may be bound for another conference finals, where they peaked as a franchise in 2021. We at least figured them as fringe contenders each year.
This year feels different, and not just because they have endured their worst start of the Leonard era. It is impossible to think that, as Harden marches toward his 37th birthday and Leonard is a well-worn 34, they can together find the magic required to win four playoff rounds. Remember, this is James Harden, who, with two chances to defeat the 76ers on the final possession of Monday’s game, missed badly twice.
No, this is a team going nowhere. Fast. Or slow. It has taken awhile for us to get here, but we are definitely here: The Clippers are no longer contenders. They are firmly in the class of pretenders.
And it is not like they can tank to the bottom of the standings, as they do not control their own first-round pick for the next four years, owing the next two to Oklahoma City and two more to Philadelphia.
That lack of draft assets also makes it impossible for the Clippers to enter any serious trade conversations for a superstar. For all the talent the Clippers do have, the Bucks are not about to take Los Angeles’ bloated salaries, without much draft compensation, in exchange for Giannis Antetokounmpo.
More likely, the Clippers would have to assume some risk to make improvements, taking on another team’s trouble. The oft-injured Anthony Davis may soon become available in Dallas. Morant is displeased in Memphis. Atlanta is playing awfully well without Trae Young. The Kings may host a fire sale. And Zion Williamson is floating out there in New Orleans. There is talent to be had if the Clips would take a swing.
But do any of those names inspire confidence that they could solve what ails these Clippers, given how much they would have to give up — likely in a three-team deal — just to acquire any available star player?
No, the Clippers are stuck. And we have barely mentioned the allegations of salary-cap circumvention against them, for which they are currently being investigated by the league. That is but one of their problems now. The Clips are the Clips again, their outlook in the standings as dire as it is for the future.
The move allows them to add outfield prospect Nick Morabito to the 40-man roster, thus protecting him from the upcoming Rule 5 draft. Teams have until Tuesday at 6 p.m. to protect players from the Rule 5 draft, which will take place on Dec. 10.
The veteran Montas, who exercised his $17 million option for the 2026 season, is expected to miss the entire season following elbow surgery.
Montas’ one-year tenure in Queens proved to be disastrous. After signing a two-year, $34 million contract early last offseason, Montas’ season got off to a delayed start following a lat strain at the start of spring training. He finally made his debut in late June, but was largely ineffective when he was able to pitch, posting a 6.28 ERA and 1.603 WHIP in nine appearances, including two out of the bullpen.
Morabito, a second-round pick of the Mets in 2022, spent the entire 2025 season with Double-A Binghamton, posting a .733 OPS with six home runs and 59 RBI. He was also excellent in the Arizona Fall League, slashing .362/.450/.464 with 16 stolen bases in 17 games.
The High Score 100 — the top-100 players in Yahoo’s newest fantasy basketball format — is a running reflection of year-to-date performance and trending production. Each weekly update captures who’s actually delivering value and who’s fading.
Here’s a breakdown of the biggest risers and fallers through the fourth week of fantasy basketball — with the complete High Score 100 at the bottom of the article. I’ll be updating my rankings every Tuesday throughout the fantasy basketball season.
Before we jump into the rankings movers, LeBron James is expected to make his season debut as soon as Tuesday night. While he’ll be in the High Score 100 next week — giving me a better chance to evaluate his fantasy value in this format — I expect James to average at least 47 points per game in High Score and be a top-20 (or better) player.
Brooks moved from 100 to 72 in the High Score 100 thanks to a couple of notable performances in Week 4 that brought his per-game average up to 36 fantasy points in High Score. Brooks has become a strong No. 2 scoring option behind Devin Booker, posting a career-best 22 points per game this season. Brooks isn’t doing much for rebounds or assists, but his scoring and steals have made him a viable utility option in High Score.
Michael Porter Jr. – FC, Brooklyn Nets: 38th overall (⬆️ 23)
Porter’s offensive output continues to surge in Brooklyn. Through Monday, Porter is putting up 24 points with 3 assists per contest (both career-highs). It may not seem like a lot, but MPJ is doing more facilitating than he’s been tasked with in the past. He’s just outside the top-40 in High Score on a per-game basis, but I have Porter inside the top-40 this week due to his recent run, averaging 44.8 fantasy points per game over his last six games.
The Most Improved Player race is so deep this year and Sharpe’s fourth-year leap deserves more respect. He’s the Blazers’ second-leading scorer at 22 points per game, plus he’s providing 5 boards and 1.5 steals, a welcome boost that’s paying dividends for fantasy managers. Sharpe jumped into the mid-60s of the rankings after an explosive Week 4, eclipsing 50 fantasy points on two occasions.
Jalen Johnson – FC, Atlanta Hawks: 13th overall (⬆️ 11)
Johnson’s elevation from rank 24 to 13 highlights his breakout status in Atlanta. He tallied 98 points against the Utah Jazz last week, the second-highest total of the season in High Score. That gem really stamped his Jokić-like ceiling — 31/18/14 with 7 steals. With Trae Young out, his playmaking has grown to the point where he’s flirting with a triple-double nightly.
Jalen Duren – FC, Detroit Pistons: 37th overall (⬆️ 5)
Moving up five slots isn’t a lot, but I just wanted to highlight how much of a beast Duren’s been lately. Duren’s leveled up to career-bests in scoring, rebounding and stocks, and has logged at least 50 fantasy points in High Score in four of his last five outings.
JALEN DUREN WITH POWER 😤
He’s up to 15 points & 7 boards in the 2nd quarter!
The growth in scoring has been just as important as his commitment on the defensive end, and it’s helped the Pistons reel off a 10-game win streak. He’s looking like one of the best frontcourt players in the Eastern Conference.
And onto the fallers…
Jerami Grant – FC, Portland Trail Blazers: Unranked (⬇️ 27)
Grant’s fall from 83 to off the list reflects his drop in production. His scoring has dropped to 18 points per game, and since he doesn’t provide many counting stats outside of that, he’s not someone you need to hold in High Score. All that said, he’s been one of the best reserves in the league this season.
VJ Edgecombe – G, Philadelphia 76ers: 76th overall (⬇️ 24)
Edgecombe’s slide from 52 to 76 mirrors his fantasy value that’s cooled off from his hot start to the season. While he’s still a must-roster player, the rookie has shot just 32% from the field over the past two weeks, averaging 11 points per game. Fortunately, he’s still getting around a combined 10 rebounds + assists but without the scoring, he needs to be on your bench.
Nikola Vučević – FC, Chicago Bulls: 54th overall (⬇️ 14)
The Bulls are playing well, so it’s surprising to see Vučević struggle with the two things he’s been most consistent at — scoring and rebounding. Over the seven games, Vuc’s per-game production tumbled to 12 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists per night. Fantasy managers are expecting at least a 17-and-10 double-double, so while it’s too early to really dive into the rankings, some concern is valid.
I finished my latest rankings update before Giannis Antetokounmpo injured his groin on Monday night. Pending the results of Giannis’ MRI, Turner’s stay on the fallers’ list could be short-lived, considering how much Milwaukee will need him if Antetokounmpo is sidelined.
I’ve been steadily docking Turner each week because he’s barely hanging onto the top 100. He’s averaging 31.4 fantasy points per game, which is 98th overall.
Collin Sexton – G, Charlotte Hornets: 99th overall (⬇️ 8)
The Hornets dealt with injuries to LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller early on, which gave the veteran guard more opportunities to step up and fill the void. The Hornets are almost back to full strength, so Sexton’s dip in the ranks is a combination of recent performance (under 30 fantasy points in his last three games) and getting ahead of what’s to come.
Complete High Score 100 rankings
The High Score 100 is a running reflection of year-to-date performance and trending production.
Note: LeBron James, Jalen Williams and Tyler Herro were excluded from the top-100 because they have yet to play in a game this season.
Victor Wembanyama’s presence — 7-foot-infinity with arms long enough to box with God, able to block 3-pointers from inside the paint and finish at the rim from outside it — is overwhelming. The challenge now facing the San Antonio Spurs? Finding a way to make sure his absence isn’t.
What was initially diagnosed as calf tightness, sidelining Wembanyama from San Antonio’s Sunday win over the Sacramento Kings, was revealed after an MRI to be a left calf strain. While the Spurs declined to provide a timetable beyond “providing updates as appropriate,” the ailment is expected to sideline the 21-year-old superstar for at least a few weeks …
The time lost for calf strains in the NBA is roughly 2-3 weeks, but 1:3 cases will miss more than 20 days and 1:5 cases will miss more than 30 days.
… and, given how dicey a proposition it can be to play on a strained calf, how precarious lower-extremity injuries can be for a figure as towering as Wembanyama, and how absolutely vital the French phenom’s health is to the Spurs’ present and future, you’d expect San Antonio’s braintrust to err on the side of exercising an exceptional amount of caution when it comes to clearing the big fella to return to the fray.
“Obviously, we’ve seen around this league recently, the calf-tightness thing is not something you want to take lightly,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson told reporters Sunday. “Don’t want to push it there.”
Two weeks on the shelf would cost Wembanyama seven games. Three weeks would cost him 10. Any more than that — league sources told Tom Osrborn of the San Antonio Express-News that Wemby will be reevaluated in two to three weeks, which isn’t the same thing as saying he’ll be back in two to three weeks — could, for the second consecutive season, cost Wembanyama his eligibility for year-end individual awards like Most Valuable Player and Defensive Player of the Year, as well as recognition on the All-NBA and All-Defensive Teams. (And, if he would’ve gone on to actually win MVP this season, making himself eligible for the 30% max on the rookie-scale extension he can sign this summer, it’d cost him tens of millions of dollars, too.)
Wembanyama ticketed himself for serious consideration on all of those ballots with a sensational start to the 2025-26 NBA season. Entering Tuesday’s play, he ranks 14th in the NBA in scoring, second in rebounding, and first by a mile in blocks per game. He’s on pace to become the third player since the NBA started tracking blocks in 1973-74 to average 25 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 swats, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and David Robinson — and he’s scoring more efficiently than those two Hall of Fame legends did.
Big Vic leads the Spurs in minutes, field-goal attempts, free-throw attempts and frontcourt touches per game, and in usage rate, finishing nearly 31% of their offensive possessions with a shot attempt, foul drawn or turnover. He’s the double-team-demanding, game-plan-distorting hub at the center of their 12th-ranked offense; he’s the all-consuming, all-trace-erasing black hole at the dark heart of their fifth-ranked defense.
He is, literally and figuratively, the biggest reason why San Antonio has raced out to a 9-4 start, within just a game of second place in the brutally competitive Western Conference; the Spurs can’t just replace him. So: What can they do?
Can D’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle carry Spurs?
On offense, the picture starts with shifting more shot-creation and scoring responsibility toward the backcourt, where De’Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle have both gotten off to strong starts.
Those repeated paint attacks pay additional dividends in the form of trips to the foul line. Castle’s averaging 6.5 free throws per game, drawing shooting fouls on nearly 22% of his attempts, and has the seventh-highest free-throw attempt rate of any player to take at least 75 shots this season, putting himself in the context of contact magnets like Banchero, Jimmy Butler, Zion Williamson and Luka Dončić. A few more forays into the paint and trips to the charity stripe would go a long way toward helping San Antonio’s offense stay afloat without Wembanyama serving as the tide that lifts all boats.
So, too, would Fox reminding everyone why he earned an All-NBA selection three seasons ago, and why the Spurs gladly handed him a $229 million maximum salaried contract extension over the summer.
Fox has hit the ground running in his first five games since returning from a preseason hamstring strain, averaging 22 points and 6.8 assists in 34.2 minutes per game on pristine 51/38/92 shooting splits. That’s good for a true shooting percentage of .613, which would be far and away the most efficient scoring mark of his career. He’s also doing it on fewer shot attempts, fewer touches, less time of possession and a lower usage rate than he’s had since his first two years in the league.
On one hand, that’s an indication of Fox working to fit comfortably into a (slightly) more circumscribed role as a No. 2 option next to a no-doubt-about-it centerpiece like Wembanyama. On the other, Fox’s strong showing in his first game sans Wemby — a 28-point, 11-assist performance in a win over his old team in Sacramento — offers a reminder that one of just nine players in the NBA to average better than 24 points and six assists per game over the past half-decade is eminently capable of scaling up and shouldering a heavier burden when necessary.
“Sometimes you can be freed of decision-making when you have less options to choose from,” Johnson told reporters after the win over the Kings. “You got the big fella to [keep] happy, when Steph plays [as well], so [Fox] probably could be a little bit more aggressive tonight. Not have to play nice.”
While Fox eschews niceness, it’d be nice to see more out of Devin Vassell, too. When playing alongside Wembanyama, the sixth-year swingman slots somewhat quietly into a complementary role, more frequently spacing the floor than getting involved directly in actions; he finishes just 13.9% of San Antonio’s offensive possessions with a shot attempt, turnover or foul drawn when sharing the floor with Wemby. When Wembanyama’s not on the floor, though, that usage rate jumps all the way up to 24.4%, according to PBP Stats — a jump of a couple of spots in San Antonio’s offensive pecking order. (A handy back-of-the-envelope comparison: That’s the difference between, say, the size of Dyson Daniels’ role in the Hawks’ ecosystem, and the size of Jalen Johnson’s.)
While the presence of Fox and Castle — and the impending return of rookie playmaker Dylan Harper, who’s missed seven games with a calf strain of his own and is expected “to return soon after Thanksgiving,” according to Jared Weiss of The Athletic — should help mitigate the loss of Wembanyama on the offensive end, remaining near the top of the league on defense figures to be a tougher task.
What about the defense without Wemby?
San Antonio has allowed just 106.5 points per 100 possessions with Wembanyama on the floor this season, a level of point-prevention that would rank second in the league, better than anybody but the smothering, rampaging Thunder. Without Wemby, though, the Spurs have been significantly more permissive, allowing 123.5 points per 100 — a rate that would rank 28th in the NBA over the full season, ahead of only the basement-dwelling Wizards and Nets.
There’s a caveat there, though. Luke Kornet — the backup center the Spurs targeted in free agency to maintain an elite level of rim protection even when Wembanyama went to the bench — has missed seven of San Antonio’s 13 games. When he’s been available, the Spurs have more than held serve in non-Wemby time: It’s only been 196 non-garbage-time possessions, but with Kornet in the middle and Big Vic on the pine, the Spurs have conceded just 108 points per 100 — again, a top-two-caliber defensive rating — and outscored opponents by 20 points in 92 minutes.
After developing into a key rotation piece and advanced stats darling in Boston, Kornet has been as advertised as an offensive rebounder, finisher and, most importantly, interior deterrent in San Antonio. Kornet is holding opponents to just 47.4% shooting at the rim when he’s the nearest defender — the sixth-lowest mark among 194 players who have contested at least 25 up-close shots, according to Second Spectrum.
“[Kornet] fits our brand of basketball,” Johnson told reporters. “It may look a little different [without Wembanyama], but we don’t have to alter our style of play.”
Johnson will need Kornet to stand tall in Wembanyama’s stead. Just as important: Even factoring in a heavier workload for Kornet than the 23 minutes per game he’s averaged thus far — the 7-2 reserve averaged 27.7 minutes per game in the 16 starts he made for the Celtics last season, and played 28 in his first start of this season against the Kings, scoring 13 points on 5-for-5 shooting, grabbing 11 rebounds and blocking 3 shots — the Spurs will need to find a way to hold fast when the backup-turned-starter sits down, too.
Bismack Biyombo got the bulk of the backup 5 minutes when Kornet was unavailable earlier in the season. They, um, didn’t go so hot — San Antonio was outscored by 26 points in his 46 minutes of work — which is one reason why the recently-returned-to-health Kelly Olynyk got them against Sacramento.
The 34-year-old Olynyk provides a dose of complementary playmaking (eight assists in 18 minutes against the Kings) and floor-spacing (37.1% from 3-point range for his career) that gives San Antonio a different look offensively; he does not, however, offer anything approaching the kind of rim protection that Wembanyama, Kornet or even a 33-year-old Biyombo bring to the table. (He has always had pretty good hands, though, consistently posting strong steal rates for a big man.) It’ll be interesting to see if Johnson feels compelled to push some different buttons tactically in non-Kornet minutes; San Antonio has played 26 possessions of zone defense in 13 games, according to Synergy Sports tracking, 18th among 28 teams that have used any zone at all.
It’ll also be interesting to see if this represents an opportunity for forward Jeremy Sochan — who has seen his minutes and role dramatically reduced after missing the first six games of the season with a sprained wrist — to reestablish his value. The 2022 lottery pick didn’t reach an agreement on an extension of his rookie-scale contract before the season, meaning he’s headed for restricted free agency this offseason. If he can turn in a strong shift as a versatile defensive piece — potentially even serving as a small-ball 5 in place of Biyombo — while continuing to make his 3-pointers, he could reassert his place in San Antonio’s long-term plans … or, failing that, mark himself as a person of interest for another franchise’s future outlook.
While the Spurs went just 13-23 after a blood clot prematurely ended Wembanyama’s second season, this year’s version of the roster looks — on paper, at least — to be better positioned to withstand a few weeks without him. We’ll find out very quickly whether that’s true: After Tuesday’s meeting with the Grizz, San Antonio will host the surging Hawks before going on the road to face the better-than-expected Suns and feisty Trail Blazers, followed by matchups with Nikola Jokić’s Nuggets and Anthony Edwards’ Timberwolves.
Break even there, and you can feel pretty good about staying in the middle of the pack in a crowded West. Slip into a slide, though, and all of a sudden the vaulted, contention-caliber ceiling that looked imminent during those strong opening weeks of the season might start to seem beyond even Wembanyama’s reach.
Victor Wembanyama’s presence — 7-foot-infinity with arms long enough to box with God, able to block 3-pointers from inside the paint and finish at the rim from outside it — is overwhelming. The challenge now facing the San Antonio Spurs? Finding a way to make sure his absence isn’t.
What was initially diagnosed as calf tightness, sidelining Wembanyama from San Antonio’s Sunday win over the Sacramento Kings, was revealed after an MRI to be a left calf strain. While the Spurs declined to provide a timetable beyond “providing updates as appropriate,” the ailment is expected to sideline the 21-year-old superstar for at least a few weeks …
The time lost for calf strains in the NBA is roughly 2-3 weeks, but 1:3 cases will miss more than 20 days and 1:5 cases will miss more than 30 days.
… and, given how dicey a proposition it can be to play on a strained calf, how precarious lower-extremity injuries can be for a figure as towering as Wembanyama, and how absolutely vital the French phenom’s health is to the Spurs’ present and future, you’d expect San Antonio’s braintrust to err on the side of exercising an exceptional amount of caution when it comes to clearing the big fella to return to the fray.
“Obviously, we’ve seen around this league recently, the calf-tightness thing is not something you want to take lightly,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson told reporters Sunday. “Don’t want to push it there.”
Two weeks on the shelf would cost Wembanyama seven games. Three weeks would cost him 10. Any more than that — league sources told Tom Osrborn of the San Antonio Express-News that Wemby will be reevaluated in two to three weeks, which isn’t the same thing as saying he’ll be back in two to three weeks — could, for the second consecutive season, cost Wembanyama his eligibility for year-end individual awards like Most Valuable Player and Defensive Player of the Year, as well as recognition on the All-NBA and All-Defensive Teams. (And, if he would’ve gone on to actually win MVP this season, making himself eligible for the 30% max on the rookie-scale extension he can sign this summer, it’d cost him tens of millions of dollars, too.)
Wembanyama ticketed himself for serious consideration on all of those ballots with a sensational start to the 2025-26 NBA season. Entering Tuesday’s play, he ranks 14th in the NBA in scoring, second in rebounding, and first by a mile in blocks per game. He’s on pace to become the third player since the NBA started tracking blocks in 1973-74 to average 25 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 swats, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and David Robinson — and he’s scoring more efficiently than those two Hall of Fame legends did.
Big Vic leads the Spurs in minutes, field-goal attempts, free-throw attempts and frontcourt touches per game, and in usage rate, finishing nearly 31% of their offensive possessions with a shot attempt, foul drawn or turnover. He’s the double-team-demanding, game-plan-distorting hub at the center of their 12th-ranked offense; he’s the all-consuming, all-trace-erasing black hole at the dark heart of their fifth-ranked defense.
He is, literally and figuratively, the biggest reason why San Antonio has raced out to a 9-4 start, within just a game of second place in the brutally competitive Western Conference; the Spurs can’t just replace him. So: What can they do?
Can D’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle carry Spurs?
On offense, the picture starts with shifting more shot-creation and scoring responsibility toward the backcourt, where De’Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle have both gotten off to strong starts.
Those repeated paint attacks pay additional dividends in the form of trips to the foul line. Castle’s averaging 6.5 free throws per game, drawing shooting fouls on nearly 22% of his attempts, and has the seventh-highest free-throw attempt rate of any player to take at least 75 shots this season, putting himself in the context of contact magnets like Banchero, Jimmy Butler, Zion Williamson and Luka Dončić. A few more forays into the paint and trips to the charity stripe would go a long way toward helping San Antonio’s offense stay afloat without Wembanyama serving as the tide that lifts all boats.
So, too, would Fox reminding everyone why he earned an All-NBA selection three seasons ago, and why the Spurs gladly handed him a $229 million maximum salaried contract extension over the summer.
Fox has hit the ground running in his first five games since returning from a preseason hamstring strain, averaging 22 points and 6.8 assists in 34.2 minutes per game on pristine 51/38/92 shooting splits. That’s good for a true shooting percentage of .613, which would be far and away the most efficient scoring mark of his career. He’s also doing it on fewer shot attempts, fewer touches, less time of possession and a lower usage rate than he’s had since his first two years in the league.
On one hand, that’s an indication of Fox working to fit comfortably into a (slightly) more circumscribed role as a No. 2 option next to a no-doubt-about-it centerpiece like Wembanyama. On the other, Fox’s strong showing in his first game sans Wemby — a 28-point, 11-assist performance in a win over his old team in Sacramento — offers a reminder that one of just nine players in the NBA to average better than 24 points and six assists per game over the past half-decade is eminently capable of scaling up and shouldering a heavier burden when necessary.
“Sometimes you can be freed of decision-making when you have less options to choose from,” Johnson told reporters after the win over the Kings. “You got the big fella to [keep] happy, when Steph plays [as well], so [Fox] probably could be a little bit more aggressive tonight. Not have to play nice.”
While Fox eschews niceness, it’d be nice to see more out of Devin Vassell, too. When playing alongside Wembanyama, the sixth-year swingman slots somewhat quietly into a complementary role, more frequently spacing the floor than getting involved directly in actions; he finishes just 13.9% of San Antonio’s offensive possessions with a shot attempt, turnover or foul drawn when sharing the floor with Wemby. When Wembanyama’s not on the floor, though, that usage rate jumps all the way up to 24.4%, according to PBP Stats — a jump of a couple of spots in San Antonio’s offensive pecking order. (A handy back-of-the-envelope comparison: That’s the difference between, say, the size of Dyson Daniels’ role in the Hawks’ ecosystem, and the size of Jalen Johnson’s.)
While the presence of Fox and Castle — and the impending return of rookie playmaker Dylan Harper, who’s missed seven games with a calf strain of his own and is expected “to return soon after Thanksgiving,” according to Jared Weiss of The Athletic — should help mitigate the loss of Wembanyama on the offensive end, remaining near the top of the league on defense figures to be a tougher task.
What about the defense without Wemby?
San Antonio has allowed just 106.5 points per 100 possessions with Wembanyama on the floor this season, a level of point-prevention that would rank second in the league, better than anybody but the smothering, rampaging Thunder. Without Wemby, though, the Spurs have been significantly more permissive, allowing 123.5 points per 100 — a rate that would rank 28th in the NBA over the full season, ahead of only the basement-dwelling Wizards and Nets.
There’s a caveat there, though. Luke Kornet — the backup center the Spurs targeted in free agency to maintain an elite level of rim protection even when Wembanyama went to the bench — has missed seven of San Antonio’s 13 games. When he’s been available, the Spurs have more than held serve in non-Wemby time: It’s only been 196 non-garbage-time possessions, but with Kornet in the middle and Big Vic on the pine, the Spurs have conceded just 108 points per 100 — again, a top-two-caliber defensive rating — and outscored opponents by 20 points in 92 minutes.
After developing into a key rotation piece and advanced stats darling in Boston, Kornet has been as advertised as an offensive rebounder, finisher and, most importantly, interior deterrent in San Antonio. Kornet is holding opponents to just 47.4% shooting at the rim when he’s the nearest defender — the sixth-lowest mark among 194 players who have contested at least 25 up-close shots, according to Second Spectrum.
“[Kornet] fits our brand of basketball,” Johnson told reporters. “It may look a little different [without Wembanyama], but we don’t have to alter our style of play.”
Johnson will need Kornet to stand tall in Wembanyama’s stead. Just as important: Even factoring in a heavier workload for Kornet than the 23 minutes per game he’s averaged thus far — the 7-2 reserve averaged 27.7 minutes per game in the 16 starts he made for the Celtics last season, and played 28 in his first start of this season against the Kings, scoring 13 points on 5-for-5 shooting, grabbing 11 rebounds and blocking 3 shots — the Spurs will need to find a way to hold fast when the backup-turned-starter sits down, too.
Bismack Biyombo got the bulk of the backup 5 minutes when Kornet was unavailable earlier in the season. They, um, didn’t go so hot — San Antonio was outscored by 26 points in his 46 minutes of work — which is one reason why the recently-returned-to-health Kelly Olynyk got them against Sacramento.
The 34-year-old Olynyk provides a dose of complementary playmaking (eight assists in 18 minutes against the Kings) and floor-spacing (37.1% from 3-point range for his career) that gives San Antonio a different look offensively; he does not, however, offer anything approaching the kind of rim protection that Wembanyama, Kornet or even a 33-year-old Biyombo bring to the table. (He has always had pretty good hands, though, consistently posting strong steal rates for a big man.) It’ll be interesting to see if Johnson feels compelled to push some different buttons tactically in non-Kornet minutes; San Antonio has played 26 possessions of zone defense in 13 games, according to Synergy Sports tracking, 18th among 28 teams that have used any zone at all.
It’ll also be interesting to see if this represents an opportunity for forward Jeremy Sochan — who has seen his minutes and role dramatically reduced after missing the first six games of the season with a sprained wrist — to reestablish his value. The 2022 lottery pick didn’t reach an agreement on an extension of his rookie-scale contract before the season, meaning he’s headed for restricted free agency this offseason. If he can turn in a strong shift as a versatile defensive piece — potentially even serving as a small-ball 5 in place of Biyombo — while continuing to make his 3-pointers, he could reassert his place in San Antonio’s long-term plans … or, failing that, mark himself as a person of interest for another franchise’s future outlook.
While the Spurs went just 13-23 after a blood clot prematurely ended Wembanyama’s second season, this year’s version of the roster looks — on paper, at least — to be better positioned to withstand a few weeks without him. We’ll find out very quickly whether that’s true: After Tuesday’s meeting with the Grizz, San Antonio will host the surging Hawks before going on the road to face the better-than-expected Suns and feisty Trail Blazers, followed by matchups with Nikola Jokić’s Nuggets and Anthony Edwards’ Timberwolves.
Break even there, and you can feel pretty good about staying in the middle of the pack in a crowded West. Slip into a slide, though, and all of a sudden the vaulted, contention-caliber ceiling that looked imminent during those strong opening weeks of the season might start to seem beyond even Wembanyama’s reach.
On the latest episode of The Mets Pod presented by Tri-State Cadillac, Connor Rogers and Joe DeMayo keep talking Pete Alonso, Edwin Diaz, and also dive into a new Mets Top 30 Prospects list.
First up, the guys look at the deal that Josh Naylor signed in Seattle to stay with the Mariners, and discuss whether or not that contract truly affects the free agent market for Alonso.
Then, Connor and Joe react to comments from Diaz about the odds for his Mets return being “50/50.”
Later, the guys get into Joe’s new prospects list, and open the Mailbag to take on questions about Ketel Marte, Alex Bregman, Tatsuya Imai, Nate Lavender, and the potential of David Stearns hiring a GM.
Be sure to subscribe to The Mets Pod at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
And while most fans and media members have pointed to the names involved in the Mets’ surplus of infielders when it comes to potential trades – players like Mark Vientos, Luisangel Acuña, Jeff McNeil, and BrettBaty – perhaps a core member of the outfielder could be on the block as well.
After the Mets’ season came to an end, SNY MLB Insider Andy Martino also brought up the possibility of the Mets exploring the trade market for stars like Nimmo and Francisco Lindor.
As Passan points out, Nimmo has a full no-trade clause as part of the eight-year, $162 million contract he signed after the 2022 season, and he is still owed $20.5 million per season through 2030.
Nimmo had another consistent season in 2025, slashing .262/.324/.436 with 25 homers, 92 RBI and 81 runs scored. His average exit velocity (91.9 MPH) and hard-hit percentage (50.2 percent) both ranked in the 88th percentile, according to Baseball Savant.
His advanced defensive numbers tell a different story, though, as both his range (42nd percentile) and his arm strength (48th percentile) rank him below league average.
The left-handed-hitting Nimmo has seen his power numbers on the rise over the course of the past few years as well, hitting at least 23 big flies in each of the last three seasons, including his career-best of 25 this past year.
While trading Nimmo would certainly come as a bit of a surprise, it could perhaps open up a corner outfield spot for free agents like Cody Bellinger or Kyle Tucker.
