The San Antonio Spurs are flourishing with an elite pool of talent. De’Aaron Fox was out with an ankle sprain in Game 1. Dylan Harper, a 20-year-old rookie, filled in his position with a historic performance. In his first playoff start, Harper matched Magic Johnson as the only rookie with a 20-10-5-5 game. Harper plays beyond his age and is already a prolific contributor for the Spurs. Since it’s early doors, everything seems merry. But the NBA business has broken up the most tantalizing cores in the past.

What Dylan Harper’s performances suggest is a star in the making. The southpaw guard is a versatile defender with a high offensive ceiling. He’s going to be a coveted asset, one that Spurs will eventually have to prove they want to keep. However, former NBA player Jeff Teague feels this may not end well for them. He drew parallels with James Harden’s situation with the Oklahoma City Thunder, when he infamously left Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook months after making it to the NBA Finals to join the Houston Rockets.

“They going to get put in the same situation as James Harden was in OKC. You see it, everybody see it. It’s like writing. Eventually, he’s going to go to the USA thing and somebody going to say, ‘You should be having your own team’,” Teague said on the Club 520 Podcast.

In Harden’s case, he was willing to stay with OKC. Having won 6MOTY, he was asking for $4-5 million more on his contract than what the Thunder offered. Those demands weren’t accepted, so James Harden was traded to the Rockets, where he signed an $80 million extension. So little needs to be said about a star finding value in this league. If there is potential, the suitors will make themselves available. Give some teams that option now, and they would fight over getting Dylan Harper.

Luckily for San Antonio, he’s still on his rookie deal. At the very minimum, it allows them to oversee his development and make a calculated decision. Harper is very mature for his age and has already produced some incredible playoff performances. The bright lights don’t scare him. In short, Dylan Harper carries himself like a star in the league. It’s going to get increasingly difficult for the Spurs to keep this core together.

Influence also matters. While on ‘Starting 5’, Kevin Durant spoke about how competitors congratulated James Harden when he signed with the Rockets. He felt like it was their tactic of filling Harden’s ears with the possibility of being the ‘man’ on a team. Dylan Harper is on that trajectory, already showcasing elite skill and awareness for his age. He may have a lot of players around the league trying to poach him, or Harper feels he is prepared for a bigger role one day.

The Spurs aren’t going to move away from Wembanyama being the cornerstone. Hence, it’s really about whether Dylan Harper can balance his personal ambitions with the team’s demands. Could he be prepared to lay down and sacrifice like a Manu Ginobili did for San Antonio? It would be a lot to ask for a player as richly talented as him.

A big positive here is Wembanyama’s nature. He enjoys playing selfless basketball first, which is the reason Stephon Castle and Harper have gained high acclaim. So sharing the spotlight may not be an issue. But the finances could be. How can the Spurs manage to bypass the punitive CBA?

Spurs can learn from the various models around the NBA

To keep a meteoric talent like Dylan Harper alongside Wemby and Stephon Castle, the San Antonio Spurs need to be willing to spend money. That is the bottom line when it comes to building a core around three genuine superstars in the NBA. Assuming they are willing to, how do they manage the second-apron implications? There are some ways to bypass the stigma around continuity and keep the core together.

First is the model introduced by the Knicks’ Jalen Brunson. Look at the names on the Knicks’ roster. There’s no way they should all co-exist without James Dolan being ripped out by tax payments. Yet, the Knicks aren’t even in the second apron. That’s all possible because at the moment, Brunson is only their third-highest-paid player. When signing his extension, the ‘Captain’ left over $100 million on the table to allow the Knicks to build a competitive roster.

The Spurs would also want to maintain their competitive edge in the West. Hence, could Victor Wembanyama lead by example and leave money on the table? Could there be a uniform sacrifice from all three to avoid disturbing the team’s dynamics? That’s one way, and something we could find out soon, as Wemby will be eligible for a massive extension during the summer.

The other way is to follow their arch-rivals, the Oklahoma City Thunder. They will start becoming expensive next season onwards, when extensions for Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams kick in. OKC relies on creating depth by organically raising talent. Ajay Mitchell will remain a low-cost option for a few more years, and so will Jared McCain. Sam Presti’s skill set allows him to manipulate the roster around the stars. So everyone but them is dispensable.

The Spurs could do something similar, keeping only a portion of their core compact. Everything else can keep revolving to ensure they never flirt with financial penalties. Either way, if the plan is to keep Dylan Harper, the Spurs will have to keep their wallets loose.