Spurs receive aggressive criticism for major decision made this offseason

This iteration of culture has a strong tendency to go too far, overreacting to things that don’t require such a strong stance. New, cool things are always ‘the best ever,’ while unfortunate circumstances result in the ‘worst day of your life.’ Sports aren’t exempt from the wide swing of the embellishment pendulum when it comes to everything from a player’s performance in a Summer League game to an organization’s draft-day decisions. The San Antonio Spurs find themselves victims of such rhetoric.

The title of the article is “5 NBA Offseason Moves That Will Look Terrible in 3 Years,” and that is a blatant overreaction. Labeling the Spurs’ decision to move the number eight pick—providing them the extra money they needed to add veterans—as one of the top-five worst moves of any team this offseason is a serious accusation. It’s a shot at Brian Wright and the front office, accusing them of bungling a lottery draft pick. General managers get fired for messing up picks that high.

There’s a good reason the Spurs traded the number 8 pick

Everyone who watched this team last season knew they needed veteran leadership on the floor. Fans screamed it from the rooftops, the coaches had to know it and Victor Wembanyama publicly expressed a desire for the vet in the locker room. When you combine those elements, adding experience was the right thing to do.

That’s only part of the equation, though. CBS’s Sam Quinn did a fantastic job explaining the increased value of pick-swaps due to the new rules of the CBA that fans are seeing multiple teams having trouble with.

Beyond that, the 2025 draft is the prize every team is hoping to win and there will be many winners, granted it turns out to be as strong of a class as it’s projected to be. You keep flexibility on your roster by adding vets on a short-term deal who will add to your quest to improve by both mentoring players and showing their experience on the floor. You can move them at any time as you prepare to bring in pieces from the more-coveted class or flip them for more assets.

There is nothing ‘terrible’ about the decision to move the number eight pick in a draft that generally had a widespread consensus of weak. It’s outrageous to suggest as much considering all the benefits of the deal Brian Wright and his staff made on draft night.