Gregg Popovich was transparent when he took the podium at media day back in late September, making it unmistakable that player development would be the main objective for the San Antonio Spurs this season. Fast forward three-and-half months later, and the grey-bearded head coach has mostly followed through on that assertion during the first year of an inevitable rebuild.
Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell have been the irrefutable go-to scoring options when healthy. Jeremy Sochan has been a starter from the second he set foot on an NBA court. Even Malaki Branham has become a vital cog for the second unit.