San Antonio Spurs wing Devin Vassell will miss the beginning of the 2024-25 season, the team announced Friday. Vassell had surgery on his right foot in the offseason and is "participating in non-contact basketball activities" as training camp approaches, according to the team. His status will be updated on Nov. 1, at which point the Spurs will have played five regular-season games.
Vassell averaged 19.5 points (on 57.8% true shooting), 3.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 68 games in 2023-24. He missed the last eight games of the season because of a stress reaction in his right foot.
At his end-of-season press conference in April, Vassell said that the plan for his foot was to "rest, ice, recover, kind of let it just heal on its own," rather than having surgery. He also said that he wanted to play all 82 games this coming season, a goal that is no longer attainable.
Vassell, 24, is an important part of San Antonio's young core. Entering Year 5 with the team, the late start means he will have to develop chemistry with veteran guard Chris Paul and rookie guard Stephon Castle on the fly. It also means that the Spurs will have to make up for his scoring and playmaking at the beginning of the season. Vassell was second on the team on usage last season, behind only rookie sensation Victor Wembanyama.
