San Antonio Spurs superstar Victor Wembanyama has been ruled out for the rest of the season due to deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder. Fans quickly reacted, with many speculating that his absence could position San Antonio to secure Duke basketball star Cooper Flagg with the top draft pick.
Since the draft lottery began in 1985, San Antonio has found success multiple times, winning it three times. They used those picks to select former MVPs David Robinson in 1987 and Tim Duncan in 1997. In 2023, they struck gold again by drafting Wembanyama with the top pick.
As of February 20, the five-time NBA champions hold a 24-29 record, placing them 12th in the Western Conference. They trail the 10th-place Golden State Warriors by three games for the final play-in spot.
This happened before with the Spurs
With 29 games remaining, the Spurs have more time than most teams, as others have played between 54 and 56 games. However, that gap also gives them an opportunity to shift their focus toward maximizing their draft odds by losing games, potentially securing Cooper Flagg as the top prize in the 2025 NBA Draft.
Despite hinting at a possible return to Duke for another year, the Blue Devils star remains the projected top pick in various mock drafts.
The idea of pairing Cooper Flagg with Victor Wembanyama for the next decade is a nightmare scenario for the rest of the NBA. However, San Antonio has been in a similar position before. One fan on X recalled the moment perfectly, saying, “Remember when David Robinson got injured, and the Spurs drafted Tim Duncan that off-season?”
Remember when David Robinson got injured, and the Spurs drafted Tim Duncan that off-season
The Cooper Flagg tank begins
pic.twitter.com/T0rcgNdOV4
— Basketball Forever (@bballforever_) February 20, 2025
During the 1996-97 season, the Spurs stumbled to a 20-62 record, largely due to Robinson’s absence. The legendary center appeared in only six games that year because of injury.
What seemed like a disastrous season at the time became a turning point for San Antonio when it landed the top pick. The Spurs used it to draft a towering 21-year-old from Wake Forest named Tim Duncan.
Can the Spurs land Cooper Flagg?
The Spurs currently hold a three percent chance of securing the top pick. As the losses pile up, their odds of landing the first selection will continue to rise.
History proves that even teams in the middle of the pack still have a shot at winning the lottery. Last season, the Atlanta Hawks entered with just a three percent chance of landing the top pick in the 2024 NBA Draft but defied the odds, beating out Washington, Houston (via Brooklyn), San Antonio, and Detroit.
Sports Illustrated’s February 17 edition projected the 6-foot-9 freshman as the top pick for the Washington Wizards, just days before the Spurs revealed Wembanyama’s injury. Flagg is putting up 19.7 points, 7.7 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.6 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game for the Blue Devils this season.
The Spurs, currently slated to pick 10th overall through their trade with Atlanta, were linked to Duke’s Kon Knueppel in the latest mock draft. However, their draft position could change as the season winds down and the playoff race takes shape.
The image of Cooper Flagg strolling past the Alamo and along the San Antonio Riverwalk will only grow more vivid.
The post Victor Wembanyama injury update triggers Cooper Flagg expectations appeared first on ClutchPoints.
