Summary: The NBA can turn in a week, and this one just flipped the table. We open with San Antonio’s gut-check moment: Victor Wembanyama’s calf strain removes a 9.9 block percentage and 21.5 rebound rate from the lineup, and the schedule shows no mercy. With seven of eight on the road and Phoenix, Denver, Minnesota, Orlando, and Cleveland looming, we ask what the Spurs’ system looks like when the alien isn’t erasing the paint. De’Aaron Fox has to carry, but the spotlight shifts to Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson, and Stephon Castle to keep the offense honest while Mitch Johnson retools the defense with scram switches and gang boards. The message: resist panic moves, gather data on non-Wemby lineups, and buy time for a late-winter ramp. Then it’s Philadelphia, where Tyrese Maxey is playing like a star and VJ Edgecombe is flashing two-way promise. Paul George returns at 35, fresh off knee surgery and a down year. On paper, he’s the perfect big wing and secondary creator; on the court, he could crowd touches and slow a thrilling pace. We lay out the decision tree: PG as stabilizer who eases Maxey’s load and mentors Edgecombe and Jared McCain, or a 30-game tryout before February if the fit stalls. The priority is clear—protect the Maxey-first era and preserve developmental runway without sacrificing playoff shot-making. We also confront the Clippers reality. At 4–10 with the league’s oldest roster and another “ramping up” cycle for Kawhi, the margins are gone. The twist of the knife: Oklahoma City owns their 2026 first-round pick. If the slide continues and the lottery smiles on OKC, add another blue chip to Shai, J-Dub, and Chet and kiss parity goodbye. Paths forward aren’t pretty—limited assets, aging stars—but acceptance and a reset beat denial. Let deals expire, retool with youth and modern development, and stop renting yesterday’s ceiling. To close, a bright spot in Detroit: Darius Jenkins delivered 26 and 8 with real pick-and-roll craft, purposeful paint touches, and lob timing to a monstrous Jalen Duren, who looks like an All-Star-level interior hub. Jenkins’ film shows a second-unit engine who can scale in a pinch, while Duren’s screening, finishing, and short-roll passing bend defenses in useful ways. Growth lives in the margins when teams protect the runway. If you enjoyed this breakdown, follow and subscribe, share with a friend who lives on Hoop Twitter, and drop a review with your take: should Philly keep PG all year or flip him if he pops? BE A FRIEND AND TELL A FRIEND!!! Social Media and Handles: X - Twitter Handles https://x.com/frontrunnerpc https://x.com/Socially_FRPC Be included in the podcast!!! Drop us a line and the best ones will get read on the podcast!!! Blue Sky Handles frontrunnerpc.bsky.social frpc-socialdept.bsky.social Be included in the podcast!!! Drop us a line and the best ones will get read on the podcast!!! YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@FRPCVince Blogs & 2nd Screen exp. https://frpc.beam.ly/blog Send us a text
