4 Reasons the NBA should secretly want the Spurs to pick 1st in the NBA Draft

2022 NBA Draft, Adam Silver
2022 NBA Draft, Adam Silver / Arturo Holmes/GettyImages
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 5
Next Slide

Reason #3: Small Markets

Although there are more small-market than big-market teams, the NBA has often faced accusations of favoring the latter. San Antonio has been the most successful small-market team in league history, and Silver and the NBA should want to continue proving any team can win. We have already seen superstars like LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic, and Luka Doncic be so good that they put small-market teams in the national conversation.

LeBron led the Cleveland Cavaliers to the NBA Finals five times, Antetokounmpo led the Milwaukee Bucks to their first championship in 50 years, and Jokic is a two-time MVP. If Wembanyama lives up to his potential, he could do the same thing for whoever drafts him. Detroit, Houston, and San Antonio are all small-market teams that need a cornerstone talent, and they all have equal odds of landing him.

However, the Spurs are the most well-run organization of those three teams. And they have a track record of successfully building around superstars. With that in mind, the league should hope the Spurs are the team to win the Wembanyama sweepstakes tomorrow night.