SAN ANTONIO – The Spurs will play in the NBA Cup semifinals Saturday. Could we see Victor Wembanyama return to the lineup?

“Victor would tell you we have a team. We have a deep team, and we rely upon playing together as a team. He may be the biggest puzzle piece, but he needs everybody else to complete the puzzle,” explained Spurs coach Mitch Johnson.

To be clear, the Spurs are still being very cautious with Wemby. But after the win over Los Angeles when Head Coach Mitch Johnson was asked if Victor would possibly play in Saturday’s semifinal in Las Vegas, Johnson’s response was “very much so.”

Playing without Wembanyama

We’re going to have to stop saying the Spurs aren’t at full strength. Literally doesn’t seem to matter which Spur is out there, and it’s measurable.

How well is this team playing together? They’re now 9-3 without Victor Wembanyama, and for those that want to throw dookie on the plus/minus stat, last year the Spurs only had three players on their roster with a positive flex. This year? Of the 18 guys who have stepped on the court, 14 are in the positive.

Playing with pace

For De’Aaron Fox, it’s about figuring out pace.

“You’re playing fast, but at some point, some guys just get out of control with it. And I think that we’re in such control, you know, we can start, stop, get to 100, get down to 50, get to 15, back to 70, like whenever you’re able to change speeds like that, I think it’s much better than just being able to run fast,” explained Fox. “And once I learned that in this league, and once I touch the paint, I think good things happen. Either they collapse and I’m able to kick the ball out. They don’t collapse? We’re one-on-one – finish at the rim. There are so many options that you can get.”

NBA Cup

And now this entire crew has earned a spot in the NBA Cup semi’s. Seven players finished in double figures against the Lakers. With 30 coming from the reigning rookie of the year Steph Castle. His teammates are not at all surprised how his game has developed in year two.

“Even last year, I think he plays a brand of winning basketball that’s both offensively and defensively. And I think he was big for us on both ends of the court. Rebound the ball, scoring the ball, distributed, defending Luca. Obviously, he had those four fouls, but I think other than that, I think he played a great game,” said Fox.

“He’s proved that he’s been a winner – high school level, college level, national championship. That’s probably the hardest thing to do in basketball. And now he closing out games for us, big time shots, big time plays, and just his overall composure, he plays with, no matter what, no matter if the crowd’s into it, no matter if they’re pressuring. And I think one thing about him, he’s always gonna stay flatlined,” said Spurs Guard Dylan Harper.

Castle will get a chance to show what he can do against the reigning MVP Shai Gilegous Alexander and the OKC Thunder on Saturday night. Eight o’clock tipoff for that game out in Las Vegas. If they win, the championship is on Tuesday.

By the way, the Spurs game slated for next Wednesday at home against the Wiz has been moved to Thursday.

THE MATCHUP

San Antonio Spurs (17-7, fifth in the Western Conference) vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (24-1, first in the Western Conference)

Las Vegas; Saturday, 8 p.m. EST

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE

Thunder -9.5; over/under is 225.5

BOTTOM LINE

The Oklahoma City Thunder face the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Cup semifinals.

The Thunder are 20-1 against conference opponents. Oklahoma City leads the league giving up only 106.2 points per game while holding opponents to 42.7% shooting.

The Spurs are 11-6 against conference opponents. San Antonio is seventh in the Western Conference with 25.9 assists per game led by Devin Vassell averaging 2.5.

The Thunder’s 14.2 made 3-pointers per game this season are just 0.8 more made shots on average than the 13.4 per game the Spurs allow. The Spurs score 13.9 more points per game (120.1) than the Thunder give up (106.2).

TOP PERFORMERS

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 32.6 points, 6.5 assists and 1.5 steals for the Thunder. Chet Holmgren is averaging 24.0 points over the last 10 games.

Keldon Johnson is scoring 13.1 points per game and averaging 6.5 rebounds for the Spurs. Stephon Castle is averaging 30.0 points and 10.0 rebounds over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES

Thunder: 10-0, averaging 126.3 points, 41.6 rebounds, 28.1 assists, 9.3 steals and 5.5 blocks per game while shooting 53.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 105.8 points per game.

Spurs: 7-3, averaging 122.7 points, 44.1 rebounds, 24.5 assists, 8.1 steals and 3.8 blocks per game while shooting 47.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 121.2 points.

INJURIES

Thunder: Nikola Topic: out (groin), Isaiah Joe: day to day (knee), Isaiah Hartenstein: out (ankle), Thomas Sorber: out for season (knee).

Spurs: Victor Wembanyama: out (calf).