Breakout Spurs forward Julian Champagnie is the biggest bargain in the NBA

Entering the 2025-26 season, the San Antonio Spurs were facing widespread questions in regard to how the pieces of their proverbial puzzle fit together. With a surplus of non-shooters along the perimeter and uncertainty in regard to whether or not Harrison Barnes could resolve those issues, many questioned if the Spurs had done enough to help Victor Wembanyama contend.

Though many players have exceeded expectations and helped elevate the Spurs in 2025-26, Julian Champagnie has become essential to team success—at just $3 million per season.

Champagnie appeared in all 82 games in 2024-25, playing 23.6 minutes per contest and shooting 41.5 percent from the field. He was by no means a bad player a season ago, but few had even pencilled him in as a potential full-time starter on a healthy 2025-26 Spurs roster.

Against all odds, Champagnie has started 56 games and appeared in all 70 of San Antonio's outings while offering the proverbial bridge to the gap between what was known and what wasn't.

Individually, Champagnie is averaging 11.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.8 steals, and 2.5 three-point field goals made on .437/.389/.837 shooting. He's reached an entirely new level since becoming a full-time starter, however, averaging 12.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 0.7 steals, and 2.8 three-point field goals made on .462/.421/.829 shooting over the past 38 games.

That alone makes Champagnie's $3 million salary and the $3 million 2026-27 club option on his contract one of the biggest bargains in the NBA. And yet, it only scratches the surface.

Julian Champagnie is a vital Spurs contributor making just $3 million

What Champagnie's emergence has done for the Spurs is simplify the matter of featuring players who aren't quite as efficient as he is from beyond the arc. That includes the starting backcourt of Stephon Castle and De'Aaron Fox, which has been instrumental to team success on both ends of the court.

For instance: The Fox and Castle two-man lineup is outscoring opponents by 2.4 points per 100 possessions without Champagnie on the court and 12.2 when he is, per Cleaning the Glass.

Castle's true shooting percentage jumps from 54.7 without Champagnie on the court to 57.5 when he is. Fox experiences an even larger leap from 55.3 to 59.8. Even Wembanyama makes a significant leap from 59.5 to 64.7.

One simply can't understate the importance of Champagnie helping to elevate Castle, Fox, and Wembanyama—the top three players on the Spurs in points and field goal attempts per game.

Julian Champagnie has helped answer the Keldon Johnson question

Though there's nothing quite as important as helping the stars raise their game, perhaps the most noteworthy difference Champagnie makes applies to Keldon Johnson. Johnson was a polarizing figure entering 2025-26, due in no small part to his lackluster three-point shooting and questionable fit with the Spurs' backcourt pairing.

What Champagnie's emergence as an efficient three-point shooter and all-around player has permitted, however, is patience with Johnson—and the creation of a tremendous forward pairing.

Johnson has played 1,782 possessions without Champagnie on the court in 2025-26. During that time, the Spurs have produced a net rating of -1.2. During the 1,518 possessions that they've shared the court, however, the Spurs have been certifiably elite at +14.6.

With their quality as a pairing impossible to ignore, the Spurs have suddenly answered the question of whether or not Johnson fits in this rotation with a resouding yes.

Truthfully, what Champagnie has accomplished in regard to becoming indespensible is a feat typically reserved for players making eight-figure annual salaries. He's owed just $3 million for the 2025-26 season, however, and has a club option at the same rate for 2026-27.

Compounded by the fact that his peaks have been game-breakers, with the Spurs going 12-3 when he scores at least 15 points, Champagnie is the ultimate bargain player.