LAS VEGAS \u2014 How do you define ethics? A subjective measurement of what\u2019s right and what\u2019s wrong, it\u2019s entered the NBA lexicon over the last year as opponents and fans have lobbed complaints of foul baiting and overtly scrappy defense at the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder.<\/p>\n
Winning a title requires grit, determination and a willingness to push core principles to their limits. Whatever you may think of the Thunder\u2019s approach to winning, it\u2019s working to historic proportions.<\/p>\n
Whether inadvertently or intentionally, Victor Wembanyama is positioning himself and his San Antonio Spurs to be the challenger, the champion of basketball justice.<\/p>\n
After leading the Spurs to victory over the Thunder in Saturday\u2019s NBA Cup semifinal, Wembanyama was asked how it felt to close out the game with a win against rival big man Chet Homgren and the team everyone has been chasing. He said it was incredible, and that he was glad he could slot into the emerging style his team developed with him on the sidelines.<\/p>\n
Then, for the second time in three days, Wembanyama used the magical word that sets off the beef alarms.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m just glad to be a part of something that\u2019s growing to be so beautiful,\u201d he said. \u201cSo pure and ethical basketball.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Spurs are not yet in a position to decide what qualifies as \u201cethical basketball.\u201d That\u2019s reserved for the teams that have gone the distance, or at least have gotten close. Teams like the Thunder.<\/p>\n
But even before Saturday\u2019s win, the Spurs were outpacing expectations. Now that they are one victory away from winning the NBA Cup, they are starting to think about the bigger picture. They have quickly skipped through the \u201cAre we good?\u201d stage and have gone straight to the \u201cCan we beat the best?\u201d phase.<\/p>\n
That transition doesn\u2019t come easily, so the Spurs have to choose their standards and fight to uphold them. Wembanyama has an ideal for what he wants them to look like.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn modern basketball, we see a lot of brands of basketball that don\u2019t offer much variety in the dangers they pose to the opponents. Lots of isolation ball. Sometimes kind of forced basketball,\u201d Wembanyama said. \u201cWe try to propose a brand of basketball that can be described as more old school sometimes, the Spurs\u2019 way, as well. It\u2019s tactically more correct basketball, in my opinion.\u201d<\/p>\n
The surface-level data and the narrative may not align perfectly. There\u2019s a difference in isolations among these teams, but the Thunder are not an outlier; they rank seventh in the NBA with 16.0 isolations per game, according to Synergy Sports, while the Spurs rank 15th with 12.1. The Celtics and Clippers, who are tied for the league lead with 18.5 a night, are having polar-opposite seasons. The Thunder lead the league in scoring efficiency in those actions, while the Spurs rank 10th.<\/p>\n
Still, the Thunder\u2019s play style has ruffled feathers along the way. It\u2019s bound to happen when the MVP is willing to fall to the ground to get something out of a drive to the rim that otherwise wouldn\u2019t exist. That persistence is the foundation of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander\u2019s greatness. He squeezes every last drop of juice out of a possession and is willing to go further than anyone else to get those last drops. That pisses off opponents. It\u2019s also what pretty much every MVP has to do, on some level, to finish on top.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s understandable for Wembanyama and the Spurs to define themselves in relation to what has become an established Thunder brand. Now that they have proven themselves against the best and sit firmly in the race for a high West playoff seed, the Spurs are developing a real brand identity of their own. It looks a lot more serious now than even they expected entering the season.<\/p>\n
In training camp, many Spurs players were asked for their season goal. Almost everyone said some version of just making the playoffs. Wembanyama stood out when he specifically said \u201csixth,\u201d claiming the Spurs were better than a Play-In tournament team. In the crowded Western Conference, that looked like a stretch, but two things have gone their way so far. First, the Warriors, Grizzlies, Mavericks and Clippers have all ranged from messy to maleficent. Second, the Timberwolves, Spurs, Lakers, Rockets and Nuggets have all been separated in the standings by a minimal margin entering Tuesday. They are all essentially playing on the same tier this season.<\/p>\n
With their distance from the Play-In mix increasingly secure, the Spurs are no longer taking on the mindset of being good enough. They have to start thinking about what they look like in a do-or-die game come April, May and even June.<\/p>\n
Maybe that\u2019s a novel question for outside observers. But Spurs veteran wing Harrison Barnes, one of the few players in the building with a ring, pushed them to ponder it early on.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhenever we talked about it, everyone was saying Playoffs. And HB actually came in, and he\u2019s like, \u2018What does that mean?\u2019\u201d De\u2019Aaron Fox said Monday. \u201c\u2018Does that mean get the eighth seed and lose in the first round? Is that a successful season? Does that mean going to the Conference finals and losing? What does that mean?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n