Grading Victor Wembanyama's NBA debut (and 3 striking Spurs observations)

2.) Jeremy Sochan vs. Tre Jones

The Silver and Black faithful debated among each other about whether Sochan or Jones should take home starting point guard responsibilities this summer, and Wednesday night only added fuel to that fire. Though the former had some encouraging flashes as a playmaker against a set defense, he struggled to produce consistent dribble penetration, often killed his dribble when players picked him up at the timeline, and had a costly turnover with the game hanging in the balance.

San Antonio was at their smoothest on offense when Jones was at the helm, which is no surprise since he is the sole natural ballhandler in the rotation. While the fourth-year floor general is more of a game manager than a dynamic advantage creator, no one else on the roster can snake pick-and-rolls, survey the hardwood, and deliver live-dribble passes as well as he does. Being undersized hurts his cause on the other end, but he is a dependable point-of-attack defender.

Despite the noticeable tradeoffs of running Sochan or Jones at the one, it was apparent both youngsters had San Antonio humming when pushing the pace in transition. The Spurs want to play an up-tempo brand of ball, and Jeremy has the rebound-and-run skills to test the boundaries of the positionless experiment that comes with their long-limbed lineups. He is also a staple of their switch-heavy defense, making it tough for Popovich to sit him on the sidelines when they need stops.