Welcome to Pounding the Rock’s 2025-26 player reviews! The series will look at the players who finished the season with the San Antonio Spurs on guaranteed contracts and who played consequential minutes and/or a vital role (so no two-way players because we hardly saw them this year, no players who were traded away, and none of the deep bench centers, since they were both irrelevant and are now all gone).
Devin Vassell
2025-26 stats: 67 games, 30 MPG, 13.9 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 38.4 3FG%
Contract Status: 3 years, $80 million remaining
Age: 25 (26 in 9 days!)
At first glance, these numbers may look low for Devin Vassell. It’s the fewest points per game
he’s scored since his second season in the league and a seemingly big drop after averaging 18 ppg over the last three seasons. However, not only has his role changed, but it’s also worth taking a moment to remember back to a year ago, when questions loomed about his offensive consistency (especially in a non-dominant role), tendency to disappear for long stretches, and untapped defensive potential.
Fast-forward to today, and not only did Vassell put all those concerns to rest this season, but he did it despite moving from second, sometimes third to fourth option in the starting unit. Part of it could be that the “lesser” role lowered expectations, or his flashier teammates made us forget about him at times, but the fact remains that he filled the exact role the Spurs needed him to on both ends of the court, and he did it on a consistent basis.
Victor Wembanyama, De’Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle may have been ahead of him in the pecking order, but Vassell was the perfect relief valve for when the defense over-committed to them or the offense broke down, in part because he possesses something much of the roster lacks: a solid midrange and pull-up game. He was the best player in the main rotation shooting 50% from from 10-16 ft, he doesn’t have to get to the hoop or be open from three to score, and he can create his own shot in a pinch. Even so, the majority of his shots came from three, where defenders often forget about him, and he made them pay a very respectable rate.
On defense, he was consistent and didn’t fall asleep on assignments while finally putting that 6’10” wingspan to good use. Players had to work to get around him, just to be met by the best shot blocker in the league when they did, and while Vassell is not a blocking machine himself (not many wings are), he had many impressive ones, especially in the playoffs when the Spurs needed him the most. (The Jaylen Williams and Chet Holgren ones immediately come to mind.) Speaking of which, he was also one of the few players who was consistent throughout the playoffs and especially the Finals, scoring efficiently in double digits in all but two postseason games.
There’s really nothing to criticize about Vassell’s season. He was quietly confident in his role and didn’t complain about it, but instead did all the little things that don’t always show up in the box score but make all the difference, such as setting screens, keep moving and contest shots. This is the solid, consistent version of him we’ve all been waiting for, and he was rewarded by being a starter on a team that went to the Finals.
Looking ahead
When Vassell first signed his rookie extension of 5 years, $146 million, there was sticker shock over its value since it made him the highest-paid Spur ever at the time. Of course, it was an overreaction when remembering the cap explosion that has taken place under Adam Silver and that the same money simply wasn’t available in Tim Duncan’s time, but Vassell still proved his worth this year on a contract that, by today’s standards, matches his status as a Top 50-75 player. (For reference, had Wemby accepted the supermax, it would have been worth more than double Vassell’s contract.)
Like Keldon Johnson, Vassell is the only other “gap era” Spur remaining on the roster and part of the shrinking “middle class” of the NBA (what I consider players who are signed for more than the midlevel exception but decently less than the max). As more young Spurs come up for rookie extensions, Vassell will continue to be tied to trade rumors, but the Spurs’ hope is likely to retain him because he is the exact type of role player a contender needs: an all-around player who doesn’t need the ball much but can do anything once he has it. (If I had to guess, when/if the Spurs eventually do need to dump salary, Fox would go before Vassell due to positional overlap, but that’s just my own hunch.)
In the meantime, Vassell needs to keep doing what he did this season and show that he is not superfluous with the rest of the roster. He managed to separate himself from the guard trio by showing he could play as a wing on both ends of the floor, creating his own niche on team. He doesn’t have to put up flashy numbers, but just fill the role that is asked of him and do it consistently, and this season, he showed he could do just that.
(One more thing: can someone please tell opposing and national announcers it’s pronounced “VUH-sell”? The amount of times I heard him called “Vastle” was ridiculous, especially considering he’s been in the league for six years now.)
Top Performance
Nov. 28 at Denver Nuggets: 35 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 7-9 from three
Not that anyone cares that much about the NBA Cup — maybe it’s cool when you advance, like the Spurs did — but the game that clinched their spot in the quarterfinals was one of their most thrilling of the season and by far Vassell’s best. Down Wemby and Castle, he led the way against a generally full-strength Nuggets club (which he’s has a knack for over the years, they must consider him a Nuggets killer by now) in another early-season sign that these Spurs were for real.
Final Grade: A
Up next: De’Aaron Fox
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