The San Antonio Spurs have made it clear that they will be patient in their build around Victor Wembanyama, as they did not go out this summer and try to make a splashy veteran signing despite having ample cap space to do so.
Instead, they’re going to spend this season mostly evaluating what they have and how the rest of their young players fit around Wembanyama to determine what the next moves will need to be to take a step forward as a team. There are a number of intriguing young players on the Spurs roster, but only Keldon Johnson was locked in long-term on a non-rookie scale deal entering this season — and his deal is a descending value contract. That changed on Monday when they signed young wing Devin Vassell to a 5-year, $146 million extension just after media day concluded, locking him in as part of the long-term plans with the franchise.
San Antonio Spurs G Devin Vassell has agreed on a five-year, $146 million contract extension, Andrew Morrison, Rich Beda and Mitch Nathan of @CAA_Basketball tell ESPN. Vassell lands rookie scale extension as part of 2020 Draft class and solidifies himself as a Spurs cornerstone. pic.twitter.com/SUK3Y0ig8T
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 2, 2023
Vassell in limited action when healthy was terrific last year, averaging 18.5 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game on 43.9/38.7/78.0 shooting splits over his 38 games played and has shown continued growth as his role has expanded in San Antonio. His combination of strong defensive chops along with steady improvement as a floor-spacer give him the skills every team is looking for on the wing, and the Spurs clearly see him continuing to take strides forward as a player in the coming seasons by making this kind of financial commitment to him.