Why De’Aaron Fox believes these Spurs can be ‘special’ despite injuries

The San Antonio Spurs he started the regular season without De’Aaron Fox for eight games. Second-round pick Dylan Harper, who impressed from the get-go, hasn’t played since early November. The Spurs are now missing Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle. Meanwhile, key players like Luke Cornett, Kelly Olynyk and Jeremy Sochan also spent time on the sidelines.

But even though they lost their stars in the long run, Spurs haven’t lost many games. ClutchPoints asked Fox if this is a special season.

“Yeah. We definitely feel like there’s something special.”

With the Silver and Black near the top of the Western standings, San Antonio’s second leading scorer extended his answer to ClutchPoints.

“Definitely. I mean, we’re playing lineups that we haven’t even practiced with, or been through training camp or the preseason,” Fox continued. “We want to come together as quickly as possible, and whenever all our guys come back, we want to do that as well.”

“…Yeah, we definitely feel like there’s something special.” ⬇

– Asked De’Aaron Fox if, given that they continue to win without some of their best players, if that indicates it could be a special year in preparation for #Spurs

Our Desi @martinezlavsa Report#GoSpursGo #PorVida pic.tvitter.com/CgIktfRiBv

— Hector Ledesma (@HectorLedesmaTV) November 21, 2025

De’Aaron Fox reflects on how the Spurs can be even better

After last season ended in March due to surgery on his left arm, Fox suffered a hamstring injury over the summer that caused him to miss the Spurs’ 6-2 opener.

“We see what can be done,” the 2023 All-Star said. “Even when I was out, we were winning games.”

Vembanjama has been out since November 14 with a calf strain. San Antonio lost Castle to a hip sprain a game later. The Spurs say Harper is close to returning from his own strain of calves for his first action from Nov. 2.

“Vic and Steph are out and Dylan is out. We’ve had so many guys miss some time and we’re still finding ways to win games,” Fox added. “So when everybody comes back, that’s what we continue to expect. But, it’s going to be lineups that we haven’t played yet. So you try to blend in as quickly as possible and it’s great to win games while you’re doing it.”

While some of Spurs who stepped up are veterans who have done it in their careers as Harrison BarnesKeldon Johnson and offseason additions Cornett and Olynyk, another one like the Summer League star David Jones Garcia, stayed out likewise.

“We’ve got a team. I think KJ (Keldon Johnson) has been great. So we’ve got a lot of guys that can come out and impact the game offensively, impact the game defensively, impact the game just with energy. So anytime you have that, especially when it’s not coming from a starter, it’s big for you,” Johnson said.

San Antonio is looking for its first trip to the playoffs since 2019. Additionally, the proud franchise has not won a postseason series since 2017. If he’s going to stop any skating, VembanjamaCastle and Harper will play a part – just not now.

“We’ve got guys coming off the bench who can really impact the game. That’s what I’m talking about when I say, ‘We’ve got a team.'”

Whether this team is special remains to be seen.