SAN ANTONIO — With some of their biggest names watching from the sidelines – including newcomer Chris Paul and reigning Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama – the San Antonio Spurs put on a show but lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder, 112-107, in their first of five preseason matchups at the Frost Bank Center on Monday night.
Julian Champagnie scored a game-high 22 points on 7-of-16 shooting. The 23-year-old forward will be coming off the bench this year, but is a contender to start in San Antonio's first handful of games to start the season with Devin Vassell sidelined due to injury.
Champagnie paced the Spurs' offense, helping them to erase a 13-point halftime when Malaki Branham hit a trey to tie things up, 82-82, with just over two minutes remaining in the third quarter. But the Thunder regained control and outscored San Antonio 30-25 the rest of the way.
Three Oklahoma City players – Ajay Mitchell, Jalen Williams and Dillon Jones – scored at least 17 points. Sandro Mamukelashvili and Branham contributed 14 and 12 for San Antonio, respectively.
Stephon Castle, the Spurs first-round draft pick from this summer, went a subtle 2-for-3 from the floor for five points. But one of those buckets was a thunderous driving dunk over the Thunder's Alex Ducas that gave the Frost Bank Center an early glimpse at the former UConn Huskie's fearlessness. The Spurs bench reacted in kind.
Meanwhile, some newly minted Spurs tallied their first points while wearing the Silver and Black. Harrison Ingram, the team's second-round draft pick from a few months ago, pulled up and scored for two points with time winding down in the game. And the team's other Harrison, the 32-year-old Harrison Barnes acquired to inject veteran leadership into the young NBA squad, finished with six points, five rebounds and three assists.
Jeremy Sochan, who is expected to start for the Spurs when the regular season gets underway Oct. 24, finished with nine points while grabbing six boards. Keldon Johnson, likely relegated to the bench following the team's offseason acquisitions, notched six points on 2-of-5 shootings.
PHOTOS: Julian Champagnie scores 22 points as Spurs lose first preseason game to the Thunder
While the team showed flashes of offensive potential on Monday, they also struggled to contain the Thunder's attack for prolonged stretches. That's part and parcel for a team that ranked 21st in the NBA in defensive rating per 100 possessions last year, though that also doesn't account for the 7-foot-3 elephant in the room but not on the floor Monday night.
It remains to be seen if defensive menace Wembanyama will suit up for the team's next preseason game Wednesday against the Orlando Magic. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. CT.
