Stephon Castle, the San Antonio Spurs rookie, is already the frontrunner for Rookie of the Year. His victory would be a significant accomplishment, but his performance since the beginning of January has consistently shown that he is only getting started.
He has performed substantially better in 2025 so far, surpassing future Hall of Famer Chris Paul in terms of worth to the Spurs. Furthermore, he is often regarded as the Spurs’ third-best player, trailing only Victor Wembanyama and De’Aaron Fox.
Castle differs from Devin Vassell in that he attacks the basket more consistently, which has resulted in positive results. While Vassell has a reputation for being a tough shot-maker, it has caught up with him this season, as his efficiency has dropped and he is shooting around the league average from three.
While he can still create shots for himself, particularly from the midrange, the Spurs cannot rely on him on a constant basis due to his tendency to be streaky. Castle, on the other hand, is relentless in attacking the basket, which is a more reliable skill because it is more difficult to counter.
Stephon Castle has an opportunity to be something exceptional for the Spurs.
His ability to get into the lane and ingenuity as a finisher, which includes hesitation dribbles and Euro steps, have given San Antonio a new aspect that Vassell simply cannot match. Castle’s ability to get into the paint has not only increased his effectiveness despite his initial problems from the outside, but it has also resulted in more free throws.
Even better, he has greatly improved his shooting over the last dozen games, hitting 40.4% of threes on 3.9 attempts per game and averaging 17.3 points in his last 16 games. That is a significant adjustment, and if Castle can be an above-average outside shooter on a large number of attempts while also being an attack dog driving into the paint, San Antonio could have something great on their hands.
With about 30 games remaining this season, Castle will most certainly continue to improve, and with a complete summer, he could be ready to make a significant leap during his second season.
That would be enormous for San Antonio, as they may already have their big three of Fox, Wembanyama, and Castle in place, but Wembanyama is on his rookie scale contract for another two seasons and Castle is on his for another three.
Overall, Castle’s performance in recent weeks has transformed the Spurs’ hierarchy. If Castle can continue his great play, he will rapidly emerge as the team’s third star, giving San Antonio a young big three that can compete.
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