Spurs coach Mitch Johnson finally deployed a three-guard lineup featuring De’Aaron Fox, Dylan Harper and Stephon Castle in a 123-103 preseason win over the Suns on Wednesday in San Antonio. Johnson described the move as “it’s time to push forward appropriately” and called it the team’s “natural evolution that will still take time.”
The group’s start was choppy. Harper and Castle combined to miss their first five shots before Fox, making his preseason debut, subbed out with 6:57 left in the opening quarter.
The trio recovered. By halftime, Fox, Harper and Castle had combined for 31 points, 12 rebounds and six assists, helping San Antonio take a 60-49 lead into the break.
Key Contributions in the First Half
Fox drilled a corner 3-pointer with one second left for the Spurs’ final points of the first half. Fox also slammed home a poster dunk. Castle scored 18 points, including 14 from the free throw line. Harper finished with nine points and drew the loudest reaction from the Frost Bank Center crowd when he caught a Devin Vassell miss for a rim-rocking tip dunk with 34.5 seconds left in the second quarter.
Fox, Harper and Castle spent a total of 11 minutes together on the court in the opening half. They combined for 19 points and finished with a net rating of plus-10.
“I’m glad they got to play some together and we got some reps out there,” Johnson said. “I thought we started the game with some very sloppy possessions, and everybody will have to have a better start to games and a better approach with that.”
Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama pointed to the early struggles. “I felt like we were trying to do the right things at the beginning, but we scored so few points,” he said. “When it clicked, it clicked. The biggest thing is I’ve got handlers all around me, guys that we want to put the ball in their hands and pick and roll around me. That makes things easier.”
Limited Track Record Together
The three guards played only 69 minutes together all of last season, including 25 in the NBA Finals, and opponents outscored the Spurs by 47 points in those minutes. By comparison, San Antonio posted a plus-9.4 net rating when Fox and Castle shared the court in the regular season, plus-6.2 with Fox and Harper, and plus-11.0 with Harper and Castle.
Fox said the guards discussed the possibility of starting together during the summer in France, when they visited Wembanyama. “Obviously, when we were in the Finals, and just throughout the playoffs, there were times where we all three played together, a lot more than we did throughout the regular season,” Fox said. “But we knew there was a chance that we’d all be starting or at least sharing the court together. We’re all excited for it.”
Fox’s Injury Setback and Johnson’s Defense of the Lineup
Johnson had announced before last week’s exhibition opener against the Atlanta Hawks that Fox, Harper and Castle would join Wembanyama and Vassell in the starting lineup. About 20 minutes later, Fox arrived at Frost Bank Center with general soreness, and the Spurs’ strength and conditioning staff held out the veteran guard. Fox played only the first half against the Suns, logging 18 minutes, 33 seconds.
Johnson addressed the criticism of the lineup. “I understand the narrative around it. I always land on the same reasoning at the very end of it,” he said. “They’re three of our better players. I know the majority of their lives, maybe their highlight tape is typically with the basketball in their hands. But De’Aaron Fox has played with other handlers and played off the ball a ton. Steph Castle won a national championship [at UConn] basically not touching the ball ever for the start of a possession. They’ve done it here. We didn’t do it a lot last year.”
Johnson also pointed to Harper’s development. “Dylan was a rookie who couldn’t play more than 20 minutes for half the season [in 2025-26] because he was going to cough up a lung because he wasn’t in shape. I think they can dribble, pass, shoot, defend, make winning plays. They’re unselfish. They have good size.”