Spurs Grades: Mason Plumlee Season Recap, Prediction For Next Year

In the latest edition of SpursRoundtable's offseason player grades following San Antonio's run to the NBA Finals, veteran big man Mason Plumlee gets under the limelight.

San Antonio became a sort of home for big men looking to keep their stake in the NBA and back up superstar Victor Wembanyama, with the likes of Bismack Biyombo, Luke Kornet and, of course, Plumlee.

Unlike these other older faces, Plumlee did not start off the season on the Spurs roster and took an unconventional approach toward the first Finals appearance of his decade-plus-long career.

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Plumlee began his 13th year in the NBA as a member of the Charlotte Hornets. He played in 14 games and started in two of them before being released by the team.

The Spurs then signed Plumlee to a 10-day contract around February, looking to beef up their center rotation and see if he could pan out long-term with the team.

Long story short, that deal turned into an extension through the rest of the year and culminated in a conference title and trip to the championship series.

While the story is enough to warrant warm feelings from Spurs fans, how did Plumlee actually aid San Antonio on the court during its path toward the Finals?

The answer is, unfortunately, not terribly much. Plumlee appeared in only six regular-season games for the Spurs after his mid-season signing, but he did get the start in one of those matchups.

He averaged under one point per game at 0.8 and tallied 2.2 rebounds across those outings. What he lacked on the box score, Plumlee made up for in eating up minutes at the center position.

Plumlee touched the court for an average of around 8 minutes in each of those six games he saw playing time, which allowed Wemby time to recover either for a few minutes or the entire night in some cases.

He matched his regular-season total in the playoffs, with six more games under his belt. In those matchups, Plumlee served much of the same role alongside Kornet to ensure San Antonio's franchise star was fresh late in games or could begin to recover for the next if the current one was already too far gone.

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It remains to be seen if Plumlee will suit up again for San Antonio, but the team's higher-ups seemed to like what they got out of the veteran center, even if it was not flashy.

With so many centers piling up on the roster for the Spurs, it seems like a foregone conclusion that some may be cut loose and sent adrift in the sea of NBA free agency.

Plumlee should not weigh too heavily on the pockets of San Antonio and has showcased an ability to perform the role that is needed from the Spurs backups, arguably better than most, which could play a key role in locking up another year in the Alamo City.

FINAL GRADE: C-, 2026 OUTLOOK: Rotational Center, Wemby Reliever