Tag: Stephon Castle

Summer Spurs fall to Sin City Hornets 97-65 in summer league play as Stephon Castle stands out

We got our first look at top San Antonio pick Stephon Castle, and he did not disappoint. 

The San Antonio Spurs may have lost their first game of the California Classic Summer League to the Charlotte Hornets 97-65, but it was not a lost exercise for the Spurs. We got our first look at top San Antonio pick Stephon Castle and fellow 2024 Spurs draft pick Harrison Ingram, and the former did not disappoint.

Castle led all Spurs in the loss with 12 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and just one turnover and personal foul each in 21 minutes of floor time, going 4-of-12 from the floor overall, 2-of-3 from the free throw line and a heartening 2-of-4 from beyond the arc.

Summer Spurs big man Nathan Mensah also had a solid outing with 7 points and 10 rebounds in 22 minutes of playing time, the Greensboro alum going 3-of-7 from the floor overall and a concerning 1-of-4 from the charity stripe.

Guard Tyson Ward also added 7 points, 4 boards, a steal and as many blocks in 19 minutes of floor time.

The Spurs next play the Sin City Kings on Sunday at 9 pm CT.

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Is Stephon Castle the San Antonio Spurs point guard of the future?

Or should the Spurs have veteran floor general Chris Paul start at the 1 for at least the first part of the looming 2024-25 NBA season?

Is No. 4 overall pick of the 2024 NBA draft Stephon Castle the San Antonio Spurs point guard of the future? Or should the Spurs have veteran floor general Chris Paul start at the 1 for at least the first part of the looming 2024-25 NBA season?

There is even a chance that San Antonio’s coaching staff have no intention whatever to play the UConn star at the point. This despite what he said about wanting to develop that aspect of his game before the Spurs took him in this year’s draft. But we expect to see the former Husky man the point at least part-time next season.

The question is whether he gets thrown directly into the fire. The host of the “Locked On Spurs” podcast, Jeff Garcia, sat down with guest Jack Thompson, formerly of San Antonio Sports Star, to talk it over. Take a look at the clip embedded below to hear what they had to say.

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Stephon Castle pre-2024 NBA Las Vegas Summer League media availability

Castle spoke about Las Vegas Summer League and getting up to speed with his new team.

The San Antonio Spurs have a bevvy of new prospects on their roster, with plans to see how they will play with the Spurs system after picking them up in the 2024 NBA draft or as undrafted free agents. They have begun to practice together in anticipation of summer league play.

These prospects will play for San Antonio later this month in the NBA’s 2024 Las Vegas Summer League. The Summer Spurs will be a mix of players who were already on San Antonio’s roster last season (like David Duke Jr., and Sidy Cissoko), unsigned players (like Jameer Nelson Jr., and Tyson Ward), and players drafted by the Spurs (like Harrison Ingram and Stephon Castle).

The latter spoke with the media ahead of Las Vegas Summer League play. Take a look at the clip embedded below to hear what he had to say, courtesy of the folks behind the Spurs’ official YouTube channel.

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What should San Antonio Spurs fans expect from former UConn guard Stephon Castle?

Castle is fresh off winning the 2024 NCAA title with the UConn Huskies.

What should fans of the San Antonio Spurs expect from former UConn combo guard Stephon Castle in his rookie season with the team? Picked up by San Antonio with their No. 4 overall pick of the 2024 draft and the only first round pick they kept, Castle is fresh off winning the 2024 NCAA title with the UConn Huskies.

He has previously opened up about the similarities between his last team and this one, but how seamless of a transition will it be for him to make the jump to NBA basketball? To get a better idea of what Spurs fans can expect from the defensive-minded wing, the host of the “Locked On Spurs” podcast, Jeff Garcia, linked up with the host of the “Locked On Huskies” podcast, Mark Zanetto, to hash it out.

Take a look at the clip embedded below to hear what they had to say about what we should expect Castle’s first season with San Antonio.

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Stephon Castle on the cultural similarities between UConn and the San Antonio Spurs

Castle is used to playing for a program known for its winning ways and strong culture.

New San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle is used to playing for a program known for its winning ways and strong culture, so the shift from the University of Connecticut Huskies to the Spurs should be a relatively seamless affair.

And the champion combo guard said as much after San Antonio selected him in the 2024 NBA draft. “I was just playing for the best coach in college basketball and now flipping to the NBA and going to play for a legendary coach like Coach Pop,” said Castle of UConn’s Dan Hurley and San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich. “It’s a blessing.”

“On the culture side of things, it’s not really a big culture change from UConn to San Antonio,” he added.

“Just being out there in the pre-draft process, you can tell it’s a hardworking program and super hard-nosed,” said Castle of his new basketball home.

“I just can’t wait to go out there and just show what I got.”

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No. 4 pick Stephon Castle signed to rookie-scale contract by Spurs

Spurs guard Stephon Castle, the fourth overall pick in the 2024 NBA draft, signed his rookie-scale contract on Tuesday.

San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle, the fourth overall pick in the 2024 NBA draft, signed his rookie-scale contract with the organization on Tuesday, the team announced.

He will make $7,587,600 next season as the fourth pick.

Castle was named the Big East Freshman of the Year after averaging 11.1 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists on 47.2% shooting from the field at UConn. He was the sixth player in program history to win the award and the first since Daniel Hamilton in the 2014-15 season.

The 6-foot-6 guard emerged as a key player for the Huskies last season, helping them win their second straight national championship. He totaled 36 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in two games in the Final Four as UConn knocked off Alabama and Purdue.

Castle was the first player selected with the fourth pick by the Spurs. He is only the fifth top-five pick in franchise history, joining Victor Wembanyama (No. 1), Tim Duncan (No. 1), Sean Elliot (No. 3) and David Robinson (No. 1).

The 19-year-old will suit up with the Spurs in summer league, beginning with the California Classic on Saturday. The team will play three games in Sacramento and at least five games in the NBA Summer League starting on July 13 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Castle will be joined by fellow rookie Harrison Ingram and roster players Jamaree Bouyea, Sidy Cissoko, David Duke Jr. and RaiQuan Gray, among others.

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Stephon Castle on wanting to play point guard with the San Antonio Spurs

After the 2024 NBA draft, Castle opened up about that desire.

New San Antonio Spurs combo guard Stephon Castle was drafted by his new team with the knowledge that he had a desire to play the point in his new home. Asked about that after the 2024 NBA draft, Castle opened up about that desire. “Just being able to show my playmaking ability with such a great teammate like that,” he said, referencing star forward Victor Wembanyama.

“(I learned) how to play off the ball at UConn, so being able to show that as well, especially with having a great teammate like Victor,”  he added. Being able to set ball screens for him and cut in space when teams are trying to load up on him, trying to use all aspects of my game to impact winning.”

“I can’t wait to get out there and show my versatility, especially with the kind of talent that we already have on that team,” said Castle. “It being the youngest team in the league right now, I feel like our future is pretty bright. I can’t wait to get out there.”

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Spurs’ Stephon Castle is excited to play with Victor Wembanyama

Stephon Castle is already looking forward to throwing lobs for Wembanyama.

The San Antonio Spurs have selected Stephon Castle with the fourth overall draft pick. He will join Gregg Popovich’s rebuilding roster and will likely come off the bench for his first few months in the league. Nevertheless, there will be times when he’s sharing the floor with sophomore phenom Victor Wembanyama.

During his debut news conference with the media, Castle shared his excitement about sharing the floor with the Spurs’ budding superstar center. He also noted that he’s looking forward to developing a partnership with Wembanyama and throwing some lob passes up to him when the opportunity arises.

“It was fun throwing lobs to DC (Donovan Clingan,)” Castle said. “So I can only imagine what it will be like (with Wembanyama)…Just to know that’s going to be my future teammate now. I’m just really excited for what our future looks like.”

Castle will undoubtedly be given a long rope once the season begins. Popovich must let him play through his mistakes and continue developing while facing NBA-level defenses.

Nevertheless, having Wembanyama as a teammate should make things easier on both sides of the floor. Spurs’ fans will likely be excited to see the young duo take to the court and will be hopeful that Castle can develop into the long-term ball-handler for San Antonio.

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Spurs rookie Stephon Castle’s favorite player is a Boston Celtic, but which?

Castle looked to the NBA champions of today to name his current favorite player in the league.

Former University of Connecticut champion combo guard Stephon Castle is the future of the San Antonio Spurs’ backcourt. And he looked to the NBA champions of today to name his current favorite player in the league, who just so happens to be star Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum.

“I just feel like he does so many different things on the court,” said Castle in a recent interview with Sirius XM (via Boston Dot Com’s Trevor Hass). “You can put him really anywhere. He could be the 1 for you, he could be the 4 for you, he’s knocking down shots, playmaking.”

“He’s just getting better, really with his all-around game,” added the UConn standout. “I just like players that are super versatile like that.”

A super versatile player himself, Castle will have the benefit of not being the focus of the opposing defenses when playing for the Spurs alongside rising star San Antonio forward Victor Wembanyama.

And if he ever develops a jumper like Tatum’s, the league will have a very big problem when that team comes to town.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Stephon Castle has already spoken to Victor Wembanyama

The San Antonio Spurs rookie spoke with Gregg Popovich and Victor Wembanyama shortly after getting drafted.

Stephon Castle was selected with the fourth overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. He joins the San Antonio Spurs with the hope of becoming their point guard of the future. Castle won the NCAA championship with the UCONN Huskies last season, helping Dan Hurley secure back-to-back titles. As such, Castle enters the NBA with a winning mentality.

Shortly after being drafted, Castle spoke with head coach Gregg Popovich and his new superstar teammate Victor Wembanyama. He will likely spend significant time with both of them in the coming months. However, they were clearly eager to get the ball rolling.

The Spurs media team has uploaded footage of Castle’s first conversation with Popovich and Wembanyama to the team’s YouTube channel. It shows the rookie on the phone minutes after having his name called and achieving his dream of making the NBA.

You can watch Castle’s first interactions with Popovich and Wembanyama after getting drafted by clicking on the embedded video above.