点击查看原文：Castle returns to the Spurs as timeline clears up for Wembanyama

Castle returns to the Spurs as timeline clears up for Wembanyama

San Antonio Spurs’ Devin Vassell, from center left, Stephon Castle (5) and Bismack Biyombo (18) talk as they watch their teammates take on the Atlanta Hawks at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025.

NEW ORLEANS – Spurs guard Stephon Castle came out of practice Sunday and a shootaround Monday with words everyone else on the team has been yearning to hear from him.

“I feel great,” Castle said.

Having missed nine games with a left hip flexor strain, Castle was pronounced good to go for Monday’s game against New Orleans at the Smoothie King Center.

"It took some time to get back out there,” Castle said, “but it feels good to be back with the guys.”

Last season’s NBA Rookie of the Year, Castle averaged 17.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and a team-leading 7.4 assists in his first 13 games before suffering a hip injury in the first half of a Nov. 16 home victory over Sacramento.

Heading into Monday, the Spurs had gone 6-3 without Castle and 7-3 without All-Star center Victor Wembanyama, who remained out against the Pelicans.

The 21-year-old Castle, who missed only one game during his rookie campaign, said the time on the sidelines had him champing at the bit to get back on the floor.

Monday will mark the first time this season the Spurs’ backcourt trio of Castle, De’Aaron Fox and Dylan Harper would all be available for the same game.

“Watching our team from afar is a lot different than playing,” Castle said. “Being able to see where I can affect the game, just watching where we fall off during the course of the game. Obviously, you don’t want to be away from the team but you’ve always got to see the good in stuff like that.”

The nature of Castle’s injury remains a mystery even to him.

He said he re-watched the entire first half of the Sacramento game and still cannot pinpoint when he hurt his hip flexor.

“There wasn’t one specific play that tweaked it,” Castle said.

The injury healed fast, Castle said, and the recovery process was not too rigorous.

Once he had pain-free range of motion in his legs and hips, Castle was good to resume basketball activities.

“I’ve been playing (on the practice court) for over a week now,” Castle said. “I’m feeling good.”

Castle was not the Spurs’ only slated returnee from the injured list Monday. The team departed morning shootaround at the Smoothie King Center expecting to get center Luke Kornet back after a one-game absence due to a left ankle sprain.

A timetable for the return of the Spurs’ most prominent 7-footer is beginning to clear up as well.

Wembanyama, like Castle and fellow injured guard Jordan McLaughlin, joined the Spurs in New Orleans after missing the first two games of the road trip in Orlando and Cleveland.

All three went through practice and shootaround sessions in New Orleans, with Wembanyama participating in a 2-on-2 workout Monday morning.

“They are all progressing on the court,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “We’ve just got to continue to do that and see how they react.”

For now, the Spurs are calling Wembanyama day-to-day. He has not played since a Nov. 14 loss against Golden State.

After Monday, the Spurs’ next game is an NBA Cup quarterfinal game against the Lakers in Los Angeles on Wednesday. The league office would certainly prefer Wembanyama to make an appearance in that game if he is able.

NBA Cup stakes aside, there are scheduling reasons for Wembanyama to sit one more game in L.A.

If the Spurs win Wednesday, their next game would be Sunday in Las Vegas in the NBA Cup semifinals.

Should they lose to the Lakers, the Spurs do not play until Monday at home, in a garden-variety regular-season game against either Oklahoma City or Phoenix.

Either way, it buys a lot of additional ramp-up time for Wembanyama should the Spurs choose to keep him out Wednesday.

Johnson says the Spurs will not place any added importance on a Cup game when it comes to Wembanyama’s health.

“We won’t treat that game, medically speaking, any different,” Johnson said.

As it stands, the Spurs were glad to get Castle back from the injured list Monday. They were glad to see Kornet in uniform as well.

They are looking for the next wave of reinforcements, whenever that comes.

“We’re having a good year right now, and we still haven’t had our whole team,” Castle said. “It’s a blessing and a curse at the same time. Guys are getting more comfortable and more shots when guys are out. Obviously we want the whole team together to get to our full potential.”