点击查看原文：Why Stephon Castle should be off-limits in Spurs' trade talks
Why Stephon Castle should be off-limits in Spurs’ trade talks
Chris Paul sees what’s coming. That’s why he keeps the young fella so close. He wants to make sure Stephon Castle sees it, too.
The game’s been over for an hour, but Paul still hasn’t stopped yapping. Around Castle, the old point guard never does.
The Spurs rookie calls him “Unc,” in part as a joke but mostly out of respect. In return, Paul specifies everything his basketball nephew does wrong, and everything he does right, and he sounds like he means it when he says the kid can be better than he ever was.
“It’s funny,” the 39-year-old Paul tells Castle at their side-by-side lockers inside Frost Bank Center, “because now you’re throwing the passes that I’m usually throwing. And I’m not used to catching ’em.”
The 20-year-old Castle grins and laughs, understanding how to take a compliment. He might not say it out loud, but he believes the same thing Paul does about his potential.
And knowing that the Spurs do, as well?
There’s no way Castle is moving anywhere this week.
Look, nobody blames Sacramento for asking. It’s no secret that the Kings are listening to offers for guard De’Aaron Fox, and it’s no secret that Fox wants to come to San Antonio, and it’s no secret that the Kings aren’t eager to give him away without acquiring at least one ready-made star-caliber player in return.
With Victor Wembanyama obviously off-limits, Castle — the 6-foot-6 two-way dynamo from Connecticut who was the No. 4 overall in last June’s NBA draft — stands as the Spurs’ most attractive trade piece.
But he’s not a trade piece. He’s an integral part of San Antonio’s future.
And if anyone suggests that Castle has to be included in any deal for Fox?
They should remember that the Spurs aren’t the desperate team here.
The Kings are.
It makes perfect sense that San Antonio is Fox’s preferred destination. Becoming Wembanyama’s pick-and-roll partner holds major appeal, as does living in the city where his wife grew up. But chances are, he won’t be the last All-Star who holds the Spurs in similar esteem.
Fox does look like a great fit. And acquiring him before Thursday’s trade deadline does come with its advantages. Doing it now would allow the Spurs to sign him to an extension this summer, and eliminate the possibility that another team could swoop in before Fox becomes a free agent in 2026.
But that doesn’t mean the Spurs should feel any pressure to get something done this week. The Kings are the ones who have to worry about letting an unhappy star player get away with nothing in return. And they’re certainly in no position to force the Spurs to part ways with an immensely talented rookie with shades of Kawhi Leonard and Shea Gilgeous-Alexander in his repertoire.
Will he ever come close to being a top-five player in the league, as both Leonard and Gilgeous-Alexander have been? Maybe not. He’s still awfully raw, especially as a shooter, and there are no guarantees his all-around game improves enough to be an All-Star.
But through 44 games of his rookie season, it’s not hard to see what Paul does. Already, Castle is an elite defender, capable of locking down point guards and small forwards. Already, he’s exhibited a rare blend of burst and vision at the offensive end of the court. And already, he’s shown the ability to unleash an even more dangerous version of Wembanyama, like he did on a brilliant play in Friday’s 144-118 romp over Milwaukee.
Midway through the fourth quarter, Castle drove hard toward the basket from the left wing, beating Taurean Prince to the paint. He kept going right at Giannis Antetokounmpo, who’d dropped down to help. But once Castle rose toward the basket, and baited the two-time league MVP into leaving his feet, he whipped the ball back to Wembanyama, who was in perfect position for a ferocious down-the-lane dunk.
“This,” Wembanyama says, “is the energy that I get inspired by.”
And the Spurs should be in no hurry to part with it. They’ve done a fine job during their rebuild of adding productive young pieces, and to take the next step they will need to say some painful goodbyes at some point. Maybe that will be with Keldon Johnson, who’s been as admirable of a teammate as the Spurs have had over the past half-decade. Maybe it will be with Devin Vassell or Jeremy Sochan, two former lottery picks with undeniable talent but with ceilings below that of a No. 2 option on a championship contender.
There’s just no reason to think a farewell is happening with Castle, who tantalizes the Spurs with his athleticism and potential even in the moments when his play looks reckless.
“He may crash the car every now and then,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson says. “I think it’s fair that anybody would, when you drive that fast and aren’t as experienced.”
They have no intention of taking away Castle’s keys. They have no desire to watch him drive somebody else’s car. And they have no reason to let him get away before he figures it all out.
In Wembanyama, the draft already gave the new-era Spurs one gift from the basketball gods. In Castle, they might have another.
His basketball uncle is sure of it.
“That’s why I’m on him all the time,” Paul says.
He sees what’s coming.
And what’s staying.
No matter how hard Sacramento asks.