The San Antonio Spurs already have the best lineup in the NBA. If Carter Bryant lives up to expectations, they should have one of the best lineups ever.
Drafted 14th overall, the Spurs continue to hope that Bryant will soon emerge as a starting-caliber wing. Of course, he’s currently buried in the depth chart behind Devin Vassell, Tobias Harris, Julian Champagnie, Keldon Johnson, and even Harrison Barnes.
If the Spurs want to get the most out of him, they’re going to have to give him extended playing time and simply live with the consequences. In his rookie season, he mostly played garbage-time minutes. He showed promise as a solid shooter and excellent defender, but made the usual mistakes that can be expected from such a young player.
As the Spurs push to win the Finals, it’s hard to accept the mistakes he will inevitably make. However, the investment should pay off, and pay off soon.
Carter Bryant Earns All-Defensive Praise
Stephon Castle has been compared to Dwyane Wade. Dylan Harper has shown shades of Manu Ginobili and James Harden. Victor Wembanyama is on the GOAT path.
Really, the only thing the Spurs are missing is a top-tier defender who can knock down shots from deep. How does Herbert Jones sound?
Jones isn’t a Hall of Famer like the players listed above, but he’s still a very capable player. He’s been limited by injuries in recent seasons, but in his last healthy season, he averaged 11 points, shot 41.8 percent from 3-point range, and finished fifth in Defensive Player of the Year voting.
If Bryant is given an extended run, that’s the type of player he can turn into.
“Carter Bryant maintains a rotation spot and turns into an impressive player,” predicted Jared Weiss on The Athletic NBA Daily. “He’s going to turn into earlier Herb Jones.”
In his first three NBA seasons, Jones was a better shooter than he is now, so being the “earlier” version is actually a better outcome for Bryant.
After the Spurs drafted him, there was an expectation that he could eventually turn into Kawhi Leonard. Of course, if a player had Kawhi comps, they would have gone first overall, not 14th. Cooper Flagg is a good example. He actually was compared to the Klaw.
No, Jones is a pretty accurate comparison. Bryant will never be a top-four option on offense, and behind Wembanyama and Castle, he should be able to dominate on defense, covering the secondary scorer. He can play against weaker competition, allowing him to flourish.
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