In the San Antonio Spurs' most recent win over the Utah Jazz, Carter Bryant got some extended run, and he was feeling himself after the game.
The San Antonio Spurs are coming off a 123-110 win over the Utah Jazz on Monday night, led by Victor Wembanyama's 33-point double-double. Of course, as Devin Vassell deals with injury and Harrison Barnes struggles, the Spurs need to solve their lack of forward depth.
Rather than trade for Trey Murphy III or Utah's Lauri Markkanen, the Spurs instead turned to rookie Carter Bryant, who was recently called up from Austin.
In one of his longest appearances to date, Bryant posted a career-high 11 points and finally made his first NBA dunk. He also recorded two blocks and a steal, cementing himself as a solid defender already.
Carter Bryant Is Coming for Castle, Sochan#
Bryant was drafted as a raw 3-and-D player, with the expectation that his defense would be NBA-ready long before his offense got there.
In recent years, the Spurs have used both Jeremy Sochan and Stephon Castle as the second-best defender on the team. Bryant thinks he can be better than both of them, but he knows that the number one spot is locked up.
"I think I could be the second-best defender in the world, because it's hard to be the best defender when a guy is 7-5 and can move like a monster out there," Bryant said after his breakout game. "So just being an elite defender, being able to make shots at a high level, and just being able to win."
While his individual goals are lofty, Bryant knows that team success is the most important thing. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter how many dunks he misses, as long as he's impacting winning.
"I think people underestimate the value of winning," he added. "Winning overshadows a lot. If you can win at a high level, everything else is going to take care of itself."
The Spurs have a hope, not quite an expectation, that Bryant will blossom into a solid NBA player. Of course, the Spurs picked Dylan Harper second overall before nabbing Bryant 14th, so they were also able to add a "sure thing" in the 2025 Draft as a key building block moving forward.