The San Antonio Spurs just lost the 2026 NBA Finals in five games. The barroom hot takes are already pouring in: Trade De’Aaron Fox. Blow it up. Start over. But here’s the thing no one wants to admit in the immediate aftermath of a gut-punch loss — this team was two wins from a championship. And Fox was a huge reason they got there.
Let’s start with what actually went wrong. The Knicks closed out Game 5 with a 94-90 grind-fest, surviving a 25-point eruption from sophomore guard Dylan Harper and a defensive clinic by Victor Wembanyama. The series turned on a devastating Game 4 collapse, where the Spurs blew a 29-point lead before OG Anunoby’s putback winner stole the momentum. Game 2 slipped away on a late turnover. The margins were razor-thin. San Antonio wasn’t outclassed; they were out-executed in tight moments by a veteran Knicks squad that had been there before.
That distinction matters. Teams that are fundamentally broken need major surgery. Teams that lose close Finals games need refinement. And San Antonio’s regular-season foundation — 62 wins, the top seed in the West — suggests the core is more than fine.
Fox’s speed transformed the Spurs from a promising young team into the league’s most dangerous transition outfit. His playmaking kept defenses from loading up on Wembanyama every single possession. And while his perimeter shooting became a talking point during the Finals, that same athleticism made him one of San Antonio’s best point-of-attack defenders. Trading Fox for a more traditional shooter would weaken the first line of defense, forcing more rotations and putting even more physical strain on Wembanyama over an 82-game season.
Then there’s the development angle. Harper and Stephon Castle both showed flashes in the playoffs — Harper’s Game 5 was a true star turn — but there’s a massive gap between thriving in spot moments and carrying an offense for eight months against every opponent’s best defensive scheme. Fox absorbs that burden right now. Removing him would dump pressure onto young shoulders that aren’t ready for it. Player development works best when responsibilities expand gradually, not when they’re dumped on overnight.
The Spurs are not a franchise in crisis. They have a generational superstar in Wembanyama. They have an emerging young backcourt. They just reached the NBA Finals ahead of schedule. The smartest move might be the hardest one: resist the urge to overreact. Improve the shooting and spacing, sure. But dumping Fox after one disappointing series would create as many questions as answers. The Spurs need growth, experience, and the scars that champions accumulate before they reach the mountaintop. Keeping De’Aaron Fox might be the move that brings the Larry O’Brien Trophy back to San Antonio in 2027.
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