Stephon Castle's three-point shooting makes his downhill attack even more dangerous

There's a lot to talk about with the San Antonio Spurs so far this season-both good and bad- but Stephon Castle should be top of mind. He's been off to an impressive offensive start, especially with his three-point shooting as he's connecting on 37.9% of his attempts. Continuing this trend of efficiency beyond the arc will make it even easier for him to unleash his downhill attack.

During his second year, Castle showed amazing growth as a perimeter shooter. After a bit of a rough start, he found his stroke during the post-All-Star Break stretch and carried it into the playoffs, where he shot 35% from range.

Now, he must prove that he can be a consistent three-point sniper throughout an entire 82-game season, and he's already making a great first impression. As time goes on, we'll see just how much his shooting will unlock other elements of his game and turn him into a complete, all-around scoring threat.

Castle's three-point shot changes everything

Since he was drafted, opponents have elected to sag off of Castle when he has the ball on the perimeter, daring him to chuck up long-range shots. Sure, that might have worked during his rookie year, but now it's starting to look foolish. He's more than willing to let it fly, and that's been evident so far this season.

His performance against the Oklahoma City Thunder was the best example of his evolution as a shooter. He wasn't afraid to take a high volume of threes, and it paid off as he drained five of his 12 attempts beyond the arc. He also punished the Houston Rockets and the Dallas Mavericks for playing off of him, combining for six makes in those games.

Soon, defenders will begin to stick closer to him so he's not burning them from distance, and this is where he can do even more damage. Castle is an elite downhill driver, so he can respond to that tighter coverage by slashing to the rim and muscling through contact to finish inside with power layups or jaw-dropping dunks.

That's where he's at his best: using his athleticism, footwork, and physicality to dominate opposing guards or bigs on the interior. His consistency from downtown will help him tap into his bread and butter even more.

This will also help Castle get back to the free-throw line

When Castle gets past that first line of defense and touches the paint, he can manipulate opponents into committing fouls with his array of deceleration moves, pivots, or pump-fakes. That knack for drawing contact can be a lethal weapon for the Spurs when they need to gain momentum in crucial moments, and we saw that throughout the NBA playoffs.

So far this season, he hasn't gotten to the line, attempting just two free throws and making one. It is impressive that he's making his threes and scoring the ball well without relying on the whistle, but his ability to draw fouls is important for this team.

But he doesn't have to trade threes for free throws. His improvement from beyond the arc can actually create more opportunities for him to get to the charity stripe. When defenders scramble out to keep him from shooting, he can drive those close-outs to get them on his hip, and just like that, they're at his mercy.

From there, he can reach into his bag of tricks to throw his opponent off balance and draw contact, sending him to the line for the easy points.

That's the beauty of basketball. One skill creates space for another, and we're going to see that for Castle. His growth as a shooter will make him even more dangerous at attacking the basket, and it'll open up a world of opportunities for the Spurs' offense.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow