Isaiah Thomas believes the San Antonio Spurs were one veteran point guard away from finishing their championship run, arguing that keeping Chris Paul could have changed the outcome of the 2026 NBA Finals.
Speaking on the Point Game podcast, Thomas said: “I believe if they had Chris Paul on this roster, they would’ve won the finals… His experience & who he is would’ve helped De’Aaron Fox, Castle, Harper.”
The Spurs reached the NBA Finals in the 2025-26 season after finishing with a 62-20 record, earning the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference. They defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder in a seven-game Western Conference Finals series before falling to the New York Knicks in five games.
San Antonio’s young core carried a major workload throughout the postseason. Victor Wembanyama averaged 23.8 points, 10.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 3.5 blocks per game in 22 playoff contests, while Stephon Castle averaged 18.2 points and 6.1 assists over 23 games.
De’Aaron Fox added 15.6 points and 6.0 assists per game during the playoffs, but his efficiency dropped compared to the regular season. After shooting 48.6% from the field and averaging 18.6 points during the regular season, Fox shot 41.4% in the playoffs.
Thomas believes Paul’s presence could have provided the type of late-game control and playoff experience that often separates championship teams. Paul, who played for San Antonio in the 2024-25 season, averaged 8.8 points and 7.4 assists in 82 games before moving on from the Spurs.
At age 40, Paul was no longer the All-NBA level scorer he was earlier in his career, but his career résumé includes 12 All-Star selections, multiple All-NBA appearances and 1,370 regular-season games. He averaged 16.8 points and 9.2 assists across his career while building a reputation as one of the league’s best floor generals.
The Spurs already had strong playmaking from their young guards. Castle averaged 7.4 assists per game during the regular season and improved to 6.1 assists in the playoffs, while rookie Dylan Harper contributed 14.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game in the postseason.
However, the Finals exposed San Antonio’s need for additional veteran stability. The Spurs lost three games by a combined nine points, including a 105-104 Game 2 defeat and a 107-106 Game 4 loss. In Game 5, New York closed out the series with a 94-90 victory.
