Stephon Castle’s improved shooting takes defenses’ best coverage against the Spurs off the table

Stephon Castle has put up 29 threes in three games and knocked down 11 of them. That's 37.9% on the third-most attempts taken in the league at the time of writing this article—10 a game. He put up 12 against the Thunder, nine in Austin versus the Rockets, and followed those up with eight in Saturday's 122-106 win in Dallas.

The three-guard lineup is the biggest question of the Spurs season, and everyone is talking about it. So much so that Mitch Johnson is probably tired of talking about it, and we're less than a week in. But after a 1-2 start, it's getting picked apart from every direction. But Castle isn't the reason why. The former UConn champion is doing his part.

Castle's three-point volume matters as much as his percentage

It's only three games, so I'm not ready to tell you that Steph is a 38% shooter now, and he likely wouldn't tell you that either. It's just too early. But the number "29" is important. He's not launching that many by accident. San Antonio needs him to take those shots to penalize opponents for their disrespectful defensive schemes.

Spurs Nation watched the practice clips all summer. Rep after rep, same mechanics, same follow-through. It looks like it's paying off. If he can keep it up, teams will hesitate to start games with their center defending the 2024-25 Rookie of the Year by sagging off him. So straying from the volume would be a win for the defense.

Castle's pull-up is the next improvement that leaves defenses without an answer

The shot I'm watching closest is the short-to-midrange pull-up, and it's looking good this year. Castle gets downhill as well as any guard in the league, which means defenses will load up, desperate to keep him out of the lane. Add the threat of a lob to Victor Wembanyama or Luke Kornet on a pick-and-roll action, and that pocket jumper is available to him constantly.

His developing jump shot is so valuable because it puts him in the driver's seat no matter what the opponent does. Sag off him, and he takes a three. Crowd the line, and he's at the rim. Load the paint, bring the big up to meet him, and he rises into a pull-up. There's no good option in there anywhere. Mastering his shot means every defensive coverage is the wrong one.

Castle often gets treated like the third wheel when people talk about the Wemby, Castle, Dylan Harper trio. I've never understood it. His game on both ends is too versatile to sleep on, and his determination is as fierce as any competitor in the NBA. This kid is already really good, and he keeps getting better.

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