Stephon Castle's latest statement gives Spurs clear answer to monumental question

The San Antonio Spurs are off to the tanking races. The team got blasted by the Charlotte Hornets, who are also supposed to be tanking, but couldn't out-tank the Silver and Black last night. To be fair, the players on the court are always trying to win the game; the front office personnel are likely the ones hoping for more losses. Last night, that mission was accomplished.

The Hornets played like the 2017 Golden State Warriors. The barrage of 3-pointers they hit the Spurs with was unreal. LaMelo Ball went 7/11, and Nick Smith Jr. shot 6/7 from deep. They shot 56.5% from deep as a team. When your opponent does that, you're probably not going to win that game. But that doesn't mean the San Antonio faithful can't be optimistic about what they saw from Stephon Castle.

Castle can be the number 3 option right away

Victor Wembanyama has been out since the middle of February, and De'Aaron Fox was just ruled out for the season so he could get the surgery he needs on his finger. That means Castle had a clear runway to dominate the ball and show the fans some more of what he can do. The kid didn't disappoint.

Steph went off for 26 points, three rebounds, one assist, one steal, and a blocked shot. The rook was 10/17 from the field and 3/7 from distance. He even stepped to the free-throw line and made 3/4 attempts.

Castle has had his fair share of stellar games this season, but things are different now. He has the third-highest usage rate on the team behind Wembanyama and Fox, so teams know that he's going to be aggressive—he always is. Without having to worry about the two top dogs on the squad, Charlotte should have had a slightly easier time corralling Steph, but that didn't happen.

San Antonio played a great game offensively, led by their number four overall pick. The Hornets just had a better one. If they could have solidified the defense at all, that game would have been winnable, but that's okay. Winning isn't the most important thing for this franchise right now.

Don't get me wrong; when they win, they deserve praise. It's hard to win in this league, and if they can figure out a way to do it without their best players, that's a good sign for the future. However, I won't be upset at the losses either.

This team needs a higher draft pick to stack the roster with more talent. They don't have enough right now. But they do have Steph Castle. At this point, the top three guys could be etched in stone already. The three-headed monster of Wembanyama, Fox, and Castle will be a problem for teams as they get healthy and grow together.

Much will depend on last year's NCAA champion continuing to improve his 3-point shot. If he can become a consistent threat from deep, the sky's the limit, and the youngest player on the team may leapfrog Fox as San Antonio's second option. He's been that good.