When the San Antonio Spurs traded for De’Aaron Fox, the reality that he’d be paired with Victor Wembanyama was cause for excitement. But because of this NBA season’s most devastating injury, there’s a new reality for not only the Spurs but Fox as well.

At 23-29, the Spurs occupy just the No. 12 seed in a crowded Western Conference. They are a scant 3.5 games behind the No. 10-seeded Golden State Warriors (28-27), but without their best player, they seem doomed now to miss the play-in tournament entirely and head straight for the lottery.

Perhaps Victor Wembanyama is due for a pleasant surprise. After his sophomore campaign — on pace to be much stronger than his rookie season — was cut short with a deep vein thrombosis diagnosis in his right shoulder, the San Antonio Spurs' lacking center depth was even more exposed than previously known.