San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle may have won the Rookie of the Year award last season, btu he is already being put on notice in his sophomore campaign.
San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle certainly enjoyed an impressive debut campaign last season, averaging 14.7 points, 4.1 assists and 3.9 rebounds over 26.7 minutes per game en route to winning the Rookie of the Year award.
There were certainly some drawbacks to Castle, however, as he posted shooting 42.8/28.5/72.4 shooting splits, good for a true-shooting percentage of 52.2 percent. There is obviously plenty of time for hi to turn it around, but his lack of a perimeter jumper is slightly concerning.
Then, to make things even more difficult for Castle, the Spurs selected Dylan Harper with the third overall pick of the NBA Draft back in June. And keep in mind: that also came after San Antonio swung a trade for De'Aaron Fox last February.
Castle went from essentially having the point guard position all to himself to competing with two other immensely talented floor generals, so he must be on his toes at all times.
In fact, Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes has already placed Castle on notice, predicting that Harper could potentially steal his job if he isn't careful.
San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle. Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images."Harper is already a more advanced playmaker than Castle, not to mention a much safer bet to actually make jumpers," Hughes wrote. "That potential to contribute both as a facilitator and a scorer sets him apart from not only Castle but also [Devin] Vassell, who has never truly established himself as a lights-out three-point threat (career 36.9 percent) or an elite setup man at the 2."
Harper is currently coming off the bench in his first season, but Hughes isn't sure how long that will last for the Rutgers product.
"However, there's a scenario where Harper's craft and offensive versatility earn him a nod ahead of both Castle and Vassell," Hughes added.
The fact that Castle could already be fighting for his job is wild considering just how impressive he was last season. To be quite frank, the Spurs' decision to trade for Fox, draft Harper and then extend Fox was definitely odd given the rather awkward fit.
You kind of get the feeling that San Antonio won't be moving forward with all three guards long term, and while Fox is still tradeable even after signing his extension, it's entirely possible that Castle could end up being the odd man out, particularly if he doesn't shore up his jump shot.