SAN ANTONIO — This season has been one of experimentation on the court for the San Antonio Spurs.
There was Jeremy Sochan at point guard and allowing Victor Wembanyama to roam free until finding him better suited to start at the center spot.
Another experiment has been tinkering with the starting unit.
To begin the season, Zach Collins and Keldon Johnson were a part of the first unit but in recent games, they find themselves now coming off the bench.
And that is perfectly fine for Collins who sees the major reason for the move: Winning.
"We don't have an option. We're trying to win games," Collins said to Ballys Sports San Antonio. "It has been a struggle this year so whatever we got to do, whatever the coaches think those adjustments need to be we have to follow suit and believe in."
Collins, along with Johsnon, off the bench gives the team another player on the court to steady the second unit.
This echoes Manu Ginobili's sacrifice to come off the bench for the betterment of the team and although the move has not racked up Spurs wins, it certainly was not an issue for Collins who sees coach Gregg Popovich's vision for the current roster.
"We know that Gregg Popovich is one of the greatest coaches to ever grace a basketball court. We know he's a very smart man so we trust his beliefs and instincts," he said.
Whether in a starting role or now off the bench Collins understands it isn't a reflection on himself as a player nor a demotion. He doesn't see it as a hard pill to swallow to put his ego aside.
Quite the contrary. The move is to simply put the team in a position to win as the season moves forward.
After all, winning cures all and if he has to come off the bench then so be it.
"There is no ego. At the end of the day the guys in this roster, the people they put in that locker room we all want to win," he added.
Collins has started 22 games of the 30 he's played in this season. He moved to the bench on Dec. 21 versus Chicago and scored 14 points and nine rebounds in 27 minutes.
He continued to play a reserve role in the team's last two games and scored 11 points in the team's recent win over Portland.
"Whatever that looks like is what we're going to believe in," he said.
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