Spurs' Stephon Castle: Paces San Antonio in Game 5 defeat
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Castle finished with 24 points (7-11 FG, 3-5 3Pt, 7-8 FT), five rebounds, six assists and three steals across 33 minutes during Tuesday's 127-114 loss to Oklahoma City in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals.
Castle led the Spurs in scoring Tuesday, turning in a highly efficient performance from the floor, though his efforts weren't enough to prevent San Antonio from falling into a 3-2 series deficit. While the star duo of Victor Wembanyama and De'Aaron Fox struggled heavily and combined for just an 8-for-30 shooting night from the field, Castle stepped up to carry the offensive load by missing only four shots all evening. With the team now facing elimination, the sophomore guard should continue to see a massive workload heading into a must-win Game 6 in San Antonio on Thursday.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Shooting woes in defeat
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Castle accumulated 14 points (1-8 FG, 1-5 3Pt, 11-14 FT), seven assists, five rebounds, two blocks and one steal over 35 minutes during Friday's 123-108 loss to Oklahoma City in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals.
Castle turned in an abysmal shooting performance, though he got to the charity stripe often and still finished as San Antonio's fourth-leading scorer. He also paced the team in assists and committed just one turnover after logging 20 giveaways in the first two games of the series. Through three third-round appearances, he's averaging 18.7 points, 8.7 assists, 5.3 rebounds and 1.7 combined steals-plus-blocks in 40.7 minutes per contest.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Scores 25 points with eight assists
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Castle totaled 25 points (10-17 FG, 1-6 3Pt, 4-4 FT), five rebounds, eight assists and one steal across 38 minutes during Wednesday's 122-113 loss to the Thunder in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals.
Castle was in attack mode from the jump, throwing down some highlight-reel jams and scoring most of his points in the paint. However, he struggled from beyond the arc, finished with a game-high nine turnovers and was a minus-11 in the nine-point loss. He'll need to do a better job of taking care of the rock when the series returns to San Antonio for Game 3 on Friday.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Double-doubles in Game 1 win
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Castle logged 17 points (5-14 FG, 1-6 3Pt, 6-7 FT), six rebounds, 11 assists and one steal across 49 minutes during Monday's 122-115 double-overtime victory over the Thunder in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals.
Castle recorded his third double-double of the postseason, helping the Spurs to an emphatic road victory in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. With De'Aaron Fox (ankle) sidelined, Castle was tasked with doing more of the ballhandling, ending with 11 assists and 11 turnovers. Despite some carelessness with the ball, Castle did an admirable job of finding his teammates, particularly Victor Wembanyama. If Fox is ruled out for Game 2, Castle is likely to serve as the primary ballhandler once again.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Stuffs stat sheet in victory
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Castle contributed 32 points (11-16 FG, 5-7 3Pt, 5-6 FT), 11 rebounds and six assists across 30 minutes in Friday's 139-109 Game 6 win over the Timberwolves in the Western Conference Semifinals.
Castle got off to a hot start in this one, scoring 14 points in the opening quarter and finishing with a game-high 32 points while playing just four minutes in the fourth. The second-year guard also knocked down a career-high five triples, sinking all three of his three-point attempts in the first half. Additionally, Castle led all players in rebounds, securing his second playoff double-double. He'll look to remain productive in the Western Conference Finals, where the Spurs will take on the Thunder.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Hits for 20 points in Game 4 loss
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Castle notched 20 points (8-17 FG, 2-6 3Pt, 2-3 FT), six rebounds, four assists, one block and one steal across 37 minutes during Sunday's 114-109 loss to the Timberwolves in Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals.
Castle delivered a balanced line during the loss, although De'Aaron Fox and Dylan Harper led the team with 24 points each. Castle was expected to be a primary beneficiary following Victor Wembanyama's ejection, but the bulk of the missing production went to Harper. Wembanyama's return in Game 5 will set things back into a normal rhythm for the Spurs, and Castle's steady production will likely continue. Over nine postseason games, Castle is averaging 18.9 points, 6.1 assists and 4.3 rebounds.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Double-doubles in Game 3 win
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Castle posted 13 points (3-11 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 6-8 FT), four rebounds and 12 assists across 40 minutes during Friday's 115-108 victory over the Timberwolves in Game 3 of the Western Conference Semifinals.
Castle became the youngest player in Spurs' history to record a points-assists double-double in a playoff game, a record previously held by Tony Parker. He didn't have his most efficient outing, but he did a phenomenal job running the offense and finished with a plus-17 differential in the win.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Scores game-high 21 points
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Castle closed Wednesday's 133-95 win over Minnesota in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals with 21 points (6-10 FG, 0-1 3Pt, 9-9 FT), four rebounds, four assists and two steals across 24 minutes.
Castle needed just 24 minutes to score a game-high 21 points, as the Spurs blew out the Timberwolves, leveling the series at 1-1. It continues what has been an impressive postseason run for the sophomore, having scored at least 15 points in all but one game while also chipping in across all major categories on most nights.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Productive in Game 1 loss
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Castle finished with 17 points (4-8 FG, 3-5 3Pt, 6-8 FT), five rebounds and five assists over 28 minutes before fouling out of Monday's 104-102 loss to Minnesota in Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals.
The second-year guard continues to look good in his first career trip to the postseason. Castle has delivered at least 15 points and five assists in six straight games for the Spurs, averaging 19.3 points, 5.8 dimes, 4.2 boards, 2.3 threes and 1.0 combined steals and blocks.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Hits for 15 points in Game 5 win
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Castle logged 15 points (6-11 FG, 2-6 3Pt, 1-2 FT), three rebounds, five assists and one block across 33 minutes before fouling out of Tuesday's 114-95 victory over the Trail Blazers in Game 5 of the first round of the Western Conference playoffs.
Although Castle's total wasn't his best, he made a solid contribution on both sides of the ball. Castle's dynamic skill set is a nightmare for opposing defenses, and he took the Trail Blazers to task, averaging 19.8 points, 6.0 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 0.8 steals over the five-game span.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Quickly returns to the bench
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Castle (hand) returned to the bench during the second quarter of Sunday's Game 4 of the Western Conference first-round series against Portland, Jared Weiss of The Athletic reports.
Castle briefly went to the locker room to get imaging done on his injured left hand, but the fact that he's back on the bench indicates that he will return to Sunday's contest. If Castle's hand injury is more severe than initially thought, then Dylan Harper and Keldon Johnson would be the next men up for the Spurs.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Exits game with hand injury
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Castle went to the locker room during the second quarter of Sunday's Game 4 of the Western Conference first-round series against the Trail Blazers due to a hand injury, Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com reports.
Castle appeared to injure his left hand while playing defense against Deni Avdija, and the former has gone to the locker room to get X-rays, per Jared Weiss of The Athletic. Keldon Johnson and Dylan Harper are both in line for bigger roles for as long as Castle is out of the game.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Pours in game-high 33 in win
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Castle closed Friday's 120-108 win over Portland in Game 3 of the first round of the Western Conference playoffs with 33 points (10-18 FG, 3-4 3Pt, 10-11 FT), two rebounds, five assists and one steal over 34 minutes.
The 33 points led all scorers on the night, as Castle stepped up for the Spurs in the absence of Victor Wembanyama (concussion). Castle is averaging 22.7 points, 5.7 assists, 5.3 boards, 2.0 threes and 1.0 steals in 35.0 minutes to begin the series, and the second-year guard could see elevated usage again in Game 4 on Sunday if Wembanyama isn't cleared to return.
Castle contributed 10 points (3-10 FG, 2-3 3Pt, 2-4 FT), 11 rebounds, nine assists and one steal in 29 minutes during Sunday's 128-118 loss to Denver.
Castle didn't have his best shooting performance in Sunday's regular-season finale, but the second-year guard still found a way to make an impact and finished just one assist away from posting a triple-double. Castle finishes the regular season with averages of 16.6 points, 5.3 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game across 68 appearances (67 starts).
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Available versus Denver
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Castle (foot) will play in Sunday's game against Denver, Raul Dominguez Jr. of the Associated Press reports.
Castle will suit up after missing San Antonio's previous two contests. The Spurs are locked into the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference, so there's a good chance Castle will see a reduced workload.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Won't play Friday
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Castle (foot) is out for Friday's game versus Dallas, per NBA reporter Matthew Tynan.
Castle is sidelined for a second consecutive contest due to a foot injury. Dylan Harper, who logged a season-high 33 minutes during his third start of the season Wednesday versus Portland, should ride with the first unit once again Friday.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Ruled out vs. Portland
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Castle (knee) is out for Wednesday's game against the Trail Blazers, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News reports.
Castle was carrying a doubtful tag due to right knee soreness, so seeing him ruled out isn't much of a surprise. The Spurs, however, are confident in Castle's chances of suiting up Friday against the Mavericks in the penultimate game of the regular season. With Castle out, look for Dylan Harper to slide into a starting role in the Spurs' backcourt alongside De'Aaron Fox.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Doubtful versus Portland
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Castle (knee) is listed as doubtful for Wednesday's game against Portland.
Castle had a triple-double in Monday's 115-102 win over the 76ers. However, he's in danger of missing Wednesday's game against Portland due to right knee soreness. If Castle does get ruled out, Dylan Harper may find himself in the starting lineup for the first time since the 123-98 win over Memphis on March 25.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Returns Monday
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Castle (leg) started the second quarter of Monday's game against the 76ers, per the broadcast.
Castle exited to the locker room with 6:13 remaining in the first quarter after colliding with an opposing player. However, the second-year guard returned to the bench shortly thereafter and appears to be good to go for the remainder of the contest.
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Spurs' Stephon Castle: Strikes for 20 in OT loss
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Castle provided 20 points (9-18 FG, 0-4 3Pt, 2-2 FT), five rebounds and nine assists across 40 minutes before fouling out of Saturday's 136-134 overtime loss to the Nuggets.
The second-year guard scored 20-plus points for the fourth time in the last five games while just missing his fourth double-digit assist performance during that stretch. Castle's hot streak has seen him average 19.6 points, 9.0 assists, 6.8 boards and 2.0 threes as he gears up for his first career postseason run.
