Three Spurs that could benefit from the untimely Charles Bassey injury

The San Antonio Spurs have announced that Charles Bassey is out for the remainder of the season after suffering a non-displaced fracture in his left patella on Tuesday night. The second-year center crashed to the court on a chase-down block at the end of the first quarter before hobbling around for a few minutes in the second frame and ultimately exiting the game.

While the timing couldn't have been worse for Bassey, who signed a four-year $10.2M contract with the team only one month ago, this unfortunate injury could allow others to showcase their skills. With that in mind, which bigs on the roster might benefit from an extended audition with the Spurs as they embark on the grueling final stretch of their schedule?

1. Sandro Mamukelashvili

Sandro Mamukelashvili is the leading beneficiary of Bassey landing on the sidelines for the last 13 games of the season. He instantly earned minutes with the second unit after signing with the shorthanded Spurs around two weeks ago, and he made his first start in a gut-wrenching overtime loss to the Mavericks, scoring ten points and nailing a pair of three-pointers.

The 23-year-old has averaged 7.7 points and 5.2 rebounds while shooting 40.9% from beyond the arc in his first six outings for San Antonio. A flimsy frontcourt rotation and Zach Collins nursing nagging knee soreness could ensure the front office has enough tape on Mamukelashvili to decide if he deserves another contract as the Spurs continue rebuilding this summer.