'Lifetime Chance': How Spurs Proved, Through NBA Finals Berth, They're Right on Time

SAN ANTONIO — Victor Wembanyama can't help but wax poetic when speaking his mind. After winning the Western Conference Finals, he even tried a metaphor.

"When you lay a brick like this," the Frenchman began, using his hands to demonstrate the construction of the San Antonio Spurs' hopeful dynasty, "and you lay it perfectly fine, at the end of the day, you get a big castle. (But) this is just like the entry hall of our castle."

Taking down the Oklahoma City Thunder on the road in a decisive Game 7 to conclude the West Finals certainly constituted several bricks. A 62-win regular season placed another; making the playoffs while avoiding the league's Play-In Tournament added a few more.

In Wembanyama's third season, the Spurs are now facing the biggest stage in basketball. If it's far from finished, this castle will take up a sizable amount of real estate.

"This is just the beginning of something really special," Spurs rookie Dylan Harper said.

May 30, 2026; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle (5) and guard Dylan Harper (2) react in the fourth quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder during Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals for the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Paycom Center. | Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

On Day 2 of training camp, Wembanyama was the first to put a number to the Spurs' end-of-season goals: if playoffs was a buzz word, "play-in" was a trigger.

San Antonio wanted to be included in its first postseason since 2019 without caveat. As soon as Harper walked into the building, he sensed that mission. The point guard nearly shouted it from the mountaintop — "playoffs is all I see," he said proudly at Media Day — even if it was only his fifth time speaking to reporters since being drafted.

Harper clarified his take while wearing an NBA Finals-bound snapback cap.

"When I first said that comment, I (hadn't) met anyone on the team, yet," Harper said. "I was going straight off just who I am, and the confidence I have in myself. But ... I think we all trust in each other, and that's the biggest thing (you need) if you want to get over humps."

The 20-year-old wasn't around when Gregg Popovich stepped away from coaching after suffering a mild stroke, thrusting Mitch Johnson to the forefront of the Spurs' bench. He missed Wembanyama's deep vein thrombosis diagnosis that cut his sophomore season short.

He felt the determination of his teammates, however, dead set on advancing further than they had gone before. And by the season's midpoint, they all felt the weight of possibility.

"You look in our locker room," De'Aaron Fox said in Los Angeles in February, "the only thing you probably think that's lacking is experience. You don't think the talent is lacking. If we can win a championship this year, obviously, that's our goal. We would love to do it."

Fox continued, over three months later in Oklahoma City: "While we were winning games, we were getting better every step of the way. By the time we got to ... All-Star break, I was like, '(This) could be real. We definitely have a chance this year."

Apr 26, 2026; Portland, Oregon, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard Devin Vassell (24) and guard De'Aaron Fox (4) celebrate during a timeout during the second half against the Portland Trail Blazers during Game 4 of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Moda Center. | Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

The Spurs did enough to fend off the Denver Nuggets to earn Johnson his first All-Star coaching gig amid an 11-game February stretch in which they refused to lose.

Each time they crept closer to the Thunder at the No. 1 seed in the West, they were told they were even further ahead of schedule than previously thought. That they had no winning experience. No part of them wanted to admit, nor give credence, to that belief.

The Spurs believed they were right where they needed to be.

"People don't talk as much about the habits, the character, the togetherness, the competitive response (they have)," Johnson said. "This team has been pretty damn consistent for a long time ... I don't know who has as much experience as we do this year."

Ahead of what will be their final series of the season against the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals, the Spurs will once again face a test bigger than the last. As has been required all year, they'll need to meet the moment. And they'll need to lean on one another.

"When guys are willing to learn," Fox began, "and guys are so selfless ... I think, one, it makes you better as a player. Two, (since) we have so much talent, it gives us a great chance to win."

Now the second-youngest team in NBA history by average age to make the NBA Finals (1977 Trail Blazers), the Spurs still don't plan to feed any notion that they lack the experience required to win a championship. They plan to keep laying the foundation of their castle.

They've got plenty of open real estate in San Antonio to work with.

"Winning the Larry O'Brien (trophy), it's a childhood dream," Wembanyama said. "Having a tangible chance at winning it, at realizing a dream ... it's a lifetime chance."

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