Enlightening advanced stat shows where Spurs must spend offseason focus

San Antonio has had an odd defensive year. They entered the season with the presumptive Defensive Player of the Year winner, and as soon as the games began, Victor Wembanyama showed everyone why he deserved that respect. The Alien had 16 blocks in the first five games of the year, and that stretch included a five-block performance.

There was no question why Wemby was the odds-on favorite to win the award, and he continued to reinforce that throughout the year. However, a recent statistic on rim protection was shared on social media, and Wembanyama's place on it tells an interesting story about San Antonio's defense as a whole. It's one that must be rewritten this offseason to raise next season's ceiling.

San Antonio's perimeter defense must improve

The chart above shows how well opponents shoot at the rim against certain defenders vs. how often those defenders are challenged at the rim. Wembanyama is low on the graph, indicating opponents struggle to convert against him near the basket, but he's also further to the right than you would expect. That means opponents are challenging him often.

After seeing this graphic, I checked where San Antonio ranks in opponents' points in the paint. Spurs fans watch a lot of games, so we see the impact Victor makes when guys drive the basketball. His impact is undeniable. However, the Silver and Black were 19th in the league in that area before the All-Star break.

With Wemby averaging four blocks a game and deterring a bunch of other attempts, these stats tell us that the guys on the perimeter are not staying in front of their man enough. That's to be expected from Chris Paul since he's one of the oldest players in the league, but the other guys don't have an excuse.

The starting lineup actually did fairly well, ranking 12th among all 30 starting units in opponents' points in the paint. The bench, on the other hand, was ranked 27th.

The Spurs must be smart this offseason

This team has a lot of issues, but many of them can be addressed by a few savvy moves. Let's call it what it is: the Spurs need almost everything a basketball team could need. They need more shooting, playmaking, perimeter defense, interior defense, and tenacity. It won't be easy to fix what ails this ball club, but that's why they have all of those assets.

General manager Brian Wright needs to make all the right moves now more than ever. Next year's draft is not projected to be on the same level as this one, so you have to get the right guys. Victor Wembanyama is going to be a top-five player next season if he continues to improve at the rate we've seen from him already. It's time to get the right guys around him to give him a real shot to compete.

They won't win a ring next season, but they'll get into the postseason and gain valuable experience. I won't make any promises about what could or won't happen after that because by then, the Alien will be the best player in the world. Awesome things can go down when you have that guy.