The San Antonio Spurs selected Lonnie Walker with the No. 18 pick in the 2018 NBA draft and hope he can be their next star.
San Antonio, a model franchise synonymous with even-keeled stability, finds themselves in a precarious predicament. They’ve perpetually been contenders for the past two decades, but are in danger of losing their best player this summer. As they work through a rare transitional phase, the first step in the post-Kawhi Leonard era is finding a helpful player at no. 18.
The Spurs hadn’t picked before No. 20 since winning the 1997 lottery and taking Tim Duncan with the first overall selection. Of course, the stretch of success that followed was historically significant. That’s 21 years of picking in the back third of the draft, which, by all measures within the ebbs and flows of the NBA, is insane.
Even with those latter picks in the draft, San Antonio famously unearths gems and cultivates talent so it’s easy to imagine them making mountains out of mole hills with a selection in the middle of the first round.
The Spurs play idyllic team basketball but could use some more dynamism and star power to bring them back into contending for championships. The selection of Lonnie Walker certainly fills those needs.
His elite athleticism and 6-foot-11 wingspan in the backcourt should make for a scary pair with Dejounte Murray. Those two will cover a lot of ground together and blitz opponents. The biggest knock on Walker is the inconsistency with his jump shot. Luckily for the Spurs, they employ the best shot doctor in the business in Chip Engelland.
Put a player with star potential in with the San Antonio ecosystem and that potential is usually realized. Gregg Popovich will break him of any bad habits and raise his efficiency.
When we look back and grade the 2018 draft in a few years, Walker has a strong chance to be one of the players we collectively shrug and say, “how did he go so late?”