SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio Spurs' Gregg Popovich already revealed who'll be making up the starting group come Wednesday night for the regular season home opener against the Dallas Mavericks.
Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson, Victor Wembanyama, Zach Collins, and Jeremy Sochan will be tapped to be the point guard.
Some thought it would be third-year guard Tre Jones but Collins believes having him off the bench is a boon for the second unit.
"To have a player like Tre coming off the bench is going to help them (second unit) so much," said Collins. "I think Tre is a great player."
Jones is coming off a career season in several statistical categories.
He posted career-high averages in points per game (12.9), steals (1.3), assists (6.6), rebounds (3.6), and minutes (29.2) during the 2022-23 season.
He also proved to be a floor general with his heady play, ability to run the offense and provide a spark of defense on the perimeter.
That kind of production and experience will steady the second unit next season and keep the team competitive when the first unit is on the bench.
"He's just a floor general that can calm everything down and run an offense when things are haywire out there," said Collins.
Opting for Sochan at point guard will give the Spurs a big lineup. With that starting five's length, and height, opposing teams will be pressed on both ends of the floor.
Vassell recently noted that the team doesn't need a true point guard with players who can bring the ball up and find open teammates.
However, with Jones off the bench, it gives the team a huge advantage.
He's someone who can provide experience to young Spurs bench players like Malaki Branham, Blake Wesley, and Charles Bassey and provide veteran bench players like Doug McDermott, Cedi Osman, and Devonte Graham a floor general to find them in the spots they like to operate.
For instance, McDermott played 497 minutes with Jones last season and connected on 53% of his field goal attempts. Without Jones for 818 minutes, his percentage dipped to 50%.
"In the second unit you need that," Collins said. "It's going to be fun to watch him for sure."
Twitter: @KENS5, @JeffGSpursKENS5
