The Spurs latest embarrassing loss should force them to embrace reality

With the San Antonio Spurs on the outside looking in on the playoff race, they will have to make tough decisions about the right direction to take to close the season. They have a relatively slim chance of making the playoffs, and it's becoming increasingly clear that they aren't going to make it. Therefore, they should strongly consider punting on this season in the hopes of coming back stronger next year.

After several rough losses, including dropping a game to the New Orleans Pelicans, who have the second-worst record in the NBA, the Spurs have little to play for. As a result, San Antonio should make tough but smart moves to help them going forward. That could include waiving Chris Paul and convincing recently acquired star point guard De'Aaron Fox to shut it down.

The San Antonio Spurs must shut down De'Aaron Fox for the season

He will need to have surgery to repair a finger on his shooting hand and should opt to have it now rather than wait until the off-season. That would give him more time to rehab, ensuring that he would be ready to hit the ground running next season. It would also allow the Spurs to give players such as Stephon Castle more playing time in hopes of preparing him for a larger role next season.

Waiving Paul and having Fox have surgery would clear out playing time for young players but, equally as important is the NBA draft lottery. The Spurs currently have the ninth-worst record in the NBA and they could potentially end up with the seventh-worst record if they aggressively tanked.

If that were the case, then they could end up having two top-ten selections in the 2025 NBA Draft factoring in that they also own an unprotected first from the Atlanta Hawks this season. That would give San Antonio more options, including potentially trading up into the top-three, or using both selections to address the need for a big man and to add more shooting.

Addressing those issues, getting Castle more playing time, and having a healthy Fox and Wembanyama could be the recipe for a playoff team next season and, hopefully, the foundations of a contender. It would require some short-term pain, though.

That being said, having Fox opt to get season-ending surgery on his finger would be the smart move, considering it could help the Spurs down the road.