Concerning Stephon Castle flaw exposed with Blazers' Game 1 strategy

Even with an explosive 2026 playoff debut, there were still some things to tighten up for the San Antonio Spurs. One that caught my attention immediately was Stephon Castle's shooting from beyond the arc. He went just 1-5 on the night from the three-point line.

Now, he still had a solid showing for a 21-year-old in his first playoff game. The young guard found his way in the paint at times to finish at the rim, draw fouls, or dish the ball to teammates. He also had some good moments defensively.

But there is a world where the Blazers continue to exploit Castle's three-point shooting as the series advances. Now, he could get away with some shaky shooting in this series, as we saw in Game 1. But it is still one of the keys to fully unlocking San Antonio's offensive attack, as we saw this season.

Portland took their chances with Stephon Castle's three-ball

Early on in Game 1, Portland's coaching staff decided to put seven-footer Donovan Clingan on Castle. It allowed Clingan to continue operating as a help defender from the weak side when Stephon played off-ball in the deep corner, without worrying too much about closing out.

Additionally, he was able to sag off when Castle was on the ball, cutting off driving lanes. Strategically, it worked early on. Stephon either hesitated to shoot, or when he did, the shots just weren't falling. This is a strategy that's given inconsistent three-point shooting guards problems over the years.

Now, as the game advanced, Portland defenders played up on Castle a bit more, allowing him to find his stride as a downhill driver and playmaker. Mitch Johnson also put him in some great off-ball actions to get him going. It was a big reason he was able to break through, scoring 17 points and dishing 7 assists.

But don't be surprised if the Blazers, and possibly other teams, keep deploying this strategy of forcing Stephon to beat them from beyond the arc.

Castle can work his way through a rough shooting stretch

Here's the good news: Stephon has already shown flashes of future elite three-point shooting. After the All-Star break, he became a 40% shooter from range. So it isn't outside of the realm of possibility for him to find his stride at any given moment in this series.

He's shown the ability to adapt and grow key aspects of his game through a competitive stretch. He must do that this postseason because his shooting is going to be a huge equalizer for the Spurs. To fully punish defenses, he has to establish himself as a threat in this area. It gets him going and also opens up San Antonio's entire offense even more.

It is definitely not the time to hit the panic button on this issue. Early concern? Sure. But Castle can figure this out as the series advances. This is where we find out if his post-All-Star hot shooting stretch can translate to the highest stage.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow