Being part of a championship-caliber squad will definitely be a silver-and-black platter for Brakefield to prosper from. For others, being a Spur last season paid off. Johnathan Williams proved himself as a playoff-worthy third-string center and even outperformed Thomas Bryant at times, who had a rocky half-season with San Antonio after being acquired for Jarrett Allen. Williams left the Spurs for the Memphis Grizzlies with much appreciation for the opportunity to showcase his talent on the biggest stage, securing a two-year deal worth 5.5 million.
In other departures, Allen Crabbe had an inconsistent time with the Spurs and was not retained, opting for a one-year pact with the Miami Heat. Rajon Rondo revived his career backing up Dejounte Murray, but couldn't stop the improvement of Fred VanVleet's playmaking abilities, shipping off with his second championship ring to the Houston Rockets, where he will definitely take pressure off the ball-handling duties of Russell Westbrook & James Harden. Trey Lyles also did not return to San Antonio as the former lottery pick showed off his shooting ability and solid rebounding skills, earning a two-year, 9.76m deal with the Indiana Pacers. Lastly, Iman Shumpert got another ring as reward for taking the Spurs up on their reunion offer and will play for the rival Clippers this coming season.
The first veteran player acquisition came in Alex Caruso, who was nearly nabbed by Coach Pop & R.C. Buford last summer before the Lakers re-signed the savvy play-making Texas A&M alum. This time, the Spurs dished their bi-annual exception at Caruso to gain his talents on a two-year agreement worth 7.4 million. Regarding higher figures, the Spurs were not finished this summer and obtained the Ginobli-esque skills of Evan Fournier. The 6'7 French SF/SG hybrid earned his stripes in Europe and grew up watching Mike Bibby spearhead plays for the Sacramento Kings, slated to don #10 this next season in honor of Bibby, a request obliged by deadly Spurs marksman, Joe Harris. Harris will instead wear #8, harking back to Spurs alum Patty Mills, the Australian sniper, who Harris surpassed last season by hitting twelve 3PT shots in a single game to set a new Spurs record. Caruso isn't quite as gifted from long range as Joe, but will easily slot in behind Spurs floor general, Dejounte Murray and make up for the loss of Rondo, who is 7 years older with far more wear on the tires so to speak. Plus, Alex is happy to return home to Texas, a College Station native.
Meanwhile, Fournier possesses a scorer's court vision and is great at off-ball execution using screens to his advantage, averaging 37% from 3PT territory. With potential to win sixth man of the year in the vein of Manu, Fourier will begin the season behind Kent Bazemore, who hit a high point after a streaky start to last season. Fournier is a passionate slasher and has defensive chops that surely will only sharpen with the Spurs. He is joining the Spurs on a 40m, four-year pact using San Antonio's mid-level exception as they remain under the luxury tax, but over the salary cap line.
Filling out the rest is big man, Mike Muscala, a stretch five that will wear #33 as Spurs fans are reminded of Boris Diaw, another bigger but invaluable contributor to title runs. Muscala is the replacement for Williams, with the rest of the roster staying intact with P.J. Tucker re-upping on a two-year deal after a much better three-point shooting percentage last season. The star trio of Brandon Ingram, Dejounte Murray & reigning league MVP, Andre Drummond now set their eyes on leading a fine-tuned Spurs squad toward the Larry O'Brien trophy yet again for the 12th consecutive occasion.
