The Minnesota Timberwolves had a hot start to begin 2026, but have since been derailed by back-to-back losses against the Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs. Two of the top teams in the Western Conference with elite young talent, both teams should remain near the top of the standings for the foreseeable future.

Going up against the Spurs, Anthony Edwards stole the show with his 55-point performance, but Victor Wembanyama's 39 points were enough to help lift them to a 126-123 victory. As mentioned, the Spurs are filled with young talent, one of those being guard Stephon Castle, who made his impact despite unimpressive scoring numbers.

After the game, former All-Star and Timberwolves veteran guard Mike Conley was asked about Stephon Castle, giving high praise to the young Spurs guard for what he's been able to do as he moves forward in his second season.

"Steph man, he's got a lot of game. I really do like his game. I like the pace he plays at. He kind of plays at his own pace. He pushes in transition, he finds his teammates, he made some big plays there at the end of the game, finding guys for open looks. Very mature for his age, very athletic, strong, and I like him," Conley said.

Castle secured the 2025 NBA Rookie of the Year honors as the fourth overall pick stepped it up in the second-half of the season en route to earning back-to-back victories for the Spurs (Wembanyama in 2024). Now, in his second season, he's stepped his game up alongside the team.

While he hasn't entirely been healthy, Castle is averaging 17.0 points, 7.0 assists, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.3 steals per game, and just recently turned 21 in November, as there's still plenty of room to grow. Matching up against the Timberwolves, Castle had the highest plus-minus of any Spurs starter (+6).

Conley has played with talented young guards like Edwards and Donovan Mitchell, and while both are elite All-Star players, who's to say that Castle can't reach that level in a few years, especially if he starts to figure out his jumpshot?

Unless the two teams meet in the playoffs, that was the last of the meetings between the Timberwolves and Spurs, as Minnesota takes the regular season series 2-1 despite dropping the finale. With young talent on both sides, it seems as though these are two teams that could be playing each other in big games several times down the line.