For a second, it appeared just like the Spurs must waive wing Julian Champagnie to suit their new additions. The maths to accumulate Harrison Barnes didn’t work with out the previous Kings ahead waiving his commerce kicker, price $3.7 million. Fortunately for San Antonio, he did.
Usually a participant wouldn’t surrender cash for a man who initiatives to be the fourth ahead on the rotation, and a entrance workplace wouldn’t insist on it. The truth that it occurred reveals that the Spurs on the very least need a nearer take a look at Champagnie, which looks as if a sensible transfer.
On the floor, Champagnie is just not significantly spectacular. He’s a strong athlete and, standing at virtually 6’8 with sneakers and a 6’10 wingspan, he has good measurement and size for the small ahead place, however he’s not a freak of nature. He’s a profession 37 p.c shooter, which is simply above the league common, and 93 p.c of his photographs had been assisted final season, so he’s not a creator. He’s an excellent defender however not a stopper and he hasn’t spent a lot time on the opponent’s greatest scorer, with the Spurs counting on Jeremy Sochan for that job. So why was it price it to maintain him round? Match, upside and contract.
The Spurs may have three forwards who’re at their greatest once they get touches constantly. One of many the reason why Keldon Johnson was despatched to the bench mid-season was to ensure Sochan would proceed to get touches regardless of taking part in with a ball handler subsequent to him. Keldon bought fewer touches off the bench however he nonetheless bought his photographs. Barnes, in the meantime, arguably had the worst offensive season of his profession as a result of he noticed a big discount in each touches and photographs as he transitioned from third choice to function participant. He gained’t seemingly return to his days of being a featured offensive participant however he would possibly see a bump in his utilization with the Spurs. And that’s why having a participant like Champagnie who doesn’t want many touches on offense to be useful is a good factor. He’ll contribute with out getting in anybody else’s manner.
Whereas Champagnie’s specialization is effective on offense, his versatility is what makes him a match subsequent to any of the opposite three forwards. If he’s on the market with Sochan, he can give attention to offering good, disruptive assist protection. Julian averaged 1.2 steals and a block each 36 minutes, which aren’t elite numbers however are ok for a ahead, and he has the scale to hassle shooters on closeouts. If he’s sharing the ground with Keldon Johnson, he can cowl essentially the most harmful perimeter risk whereas Keldon hides on the opposite ahead. And if he’s taking part in subsequent to Barnes, San Antonio may have two well-rounded guys with good measurement who may not be the most effective individually however can maintain their very own and contribute on the workforce stage. The opposite three forwards might match properly collectively, but it surely by no means hurts to have a plug-and-play choice that may be slated subsequent to anybody.
Now, there’s all the time a hazard of overvaluing function gamers throughout rebuilds and it’s arduous to get too enthusiastic about an unremarkable function participant, which is what Champagnie has been. Happily, there’s a clear path for him to grow to be a greater model of himself. Champagnie had the second-best three-point capturing share on the workforce from above the break final season, behind solely Doug McDermott, however he struggled from the corners. With Chris Paul in tow, Tre Jones working the second unit and Victor Wembanyama drawing further defenders, Champagnie ought to get extra of these open nook seems to be and there’s no purpose to imagine he can’t make greater than the 35 p.c he hit final season. He’s already an excellent defender who ought to get higher as the sport slows down for him, so if the shot goes from good to nice he might realistically grow to be an excellent fifth starter or utility sixth man.
Will that occur? It’s unimaginable to inform. Even when it did, the Spurs don’t have the kind of high-usage ball handlers like Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving that make low-usage 3-and-D forwards as beneficial. Whereas Champagnie’s fundamental however sound two-way sport makes him a match within the quick time period, zooming on the market are query marks. San Antonio ideally would have gamers who can go, dribble and shoot round Wemby and Champagnie can solely do a kind of issues. The excellent news is that if he doesn’t discover a place in Pop’s rotation he can all the time be traded. He’s on a non-guaranteed deal for this season and the following, and likewise has some NBA expertise, simply turned 23 and is reasonable. He arguably ought to have extra of a market than any non-core younger participant on the roster, as he ought to attraction to each groups searching for some depth and people making an attempt to chop wage.
Champagnie gained’t be the distinction between successful 40 video games as a substitute of 30 and he’s not going to be the centerpiece of any main deal. He might develop right into a beneficial 3-and-D wing but it surely may not occur in San Antonio now that the wing spots are crowded. It may be arduous to even discover minutes for him early within the season.
No matter what finally ends up taking place, Champagnie was nonetheless price Barnes’ monetary sacrifice and the Spurs had been proper to struggle to maintain him. He’s not particular in any apparent methods, however his restricted however strong talent set makes him a purposeful piece, which issues now that the rebuild has moved previous the experimentation level and right into a extra pragmatic stage.
