3 Former San Antonio Spurs thriving elsewhere to start the season

Saying the Spurs have been a disappointment would be an understatement. Even after landing Victor Wembanyama with the number one overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, San Antonio is still on pace for 14 wins and their worst record in franchise history. Nevertheless, this young team is roughly one-fifth of the way through their regular season schedule, and they have plenty of time to turn things around.

Watching the Silver and Black stumble on both sides of the ball has been a frustrating experience for everyone, and their unbridled losing is enough to make you question whether the organization would be better off had they chosen a different direction. The front office had to part ways with multiple fan favorites to initiate their full-scale rebuild, but what are their former players up to around the league?

1.) Derrick White

Spurs fans everywhere shed a collective tear when General Manager Brian Wright dealt Derrick White to the Boston Celtics at the 2022 trade deadline. He was one of the lone bright spots in the aftermath of the Kawhi Leonard dilemma, transforming himself from an unheralded prospect into an improbable postseason hero for an organization stuck in limbo. Nobody worked harder on both ends of the court.

White brought his relentless motor and two-way tenacity to Beantown, and he has thrived in a scaled-down role as a complementary piece next to All-Stars like Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Jrue Holiday, and Kristaps Porzingis. The veteran shooting guard may not be the cornerstone of the Celtics, but he is the superglue that holds everything together for arguably the best squad in the league this season.

San Antonio once had to spread minutes between Dejounte Murray, Patty Mills, Lonnie Walker, Devin Vassell, Tre Jones, and White. Their backcourt has become barren over the last few years, leaving an unmistakable void that youngsters like Malaki Branham and Blake Wesley have yet to fill. Derrick only has one more season left on his extension. Perhaps the Spurs can lure him back to the 2-1-0 in 2025.