San Antonio Spurs forward Julian Champagnie (30) shoots over Cleveland Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley (4) during the second half of their NBA game at the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Friday, April 4, 2025. Cleveland beat the Spurs 114-113.
Marvin Pfeiffer/San Antonio Express-News
In a world growing more unpredictable by the day, there are at least three things all but certain to happen Sunday.
The sun will rise. The sun will set. Somewhere in between, Chris Paul, Harrison Barnes and Julian Champagnie will suit up and play for the Spurs.
Each of those three is set to play in their 82nd game of the season when Toronto visits the Frost Bank Center in the season finale for both teams.
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“I cannot expect anything else,” Spurs acting coach Mitch Johnson said.
Call it the Spurs’ version of Iron Man 3.
It would mark the first time the Spurs had at least three players appear in every regular-season game since 2001-02, when Tim Duncan, Antonio Daniels and Malik Rose accomplished that feat.
Not surprisingly, the last team league-wide to do it was coached by renowned maniac Tom Thibodeau.
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The 2017-18 Minnesota Timberwolves had four players play 82 games – Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, Taj Gibson and Tyus Jones.
Johnson is proud of the players who helped the 2024-25 Spurs join that rugged list.
“How cool is that?” Johnson said. “It’s a heck of an accomplishment. You’re showing up for work when you’re not feeling well.”
For Barnes, it will mark his third consecutive Iron Man season. The 32-year-old forward has played in 303 consecutive games, the longest active streak in the league behind New York’s Mikal Bridges (554).
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For the 39-year-old Paul, it will mark the second time in 20 NBA seasons he will play in all 82 games. The last time came in 2014-15.
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“There’s a lot that goes into it,” Paul said. “Freak injuries happen here and there. I’m grateful to the training staff, to everyone in the organization. We’re going to keep it going.”
Paul and Barnes started Friday’s 117-98 loss in Phoenix as usual, but Johnson opted to rest them for the duration of the second half.
“Those guys have played 81 games,” Johnson said. “I’ll tip the cap they played the 14 minutes. I’m sure their bodies could use the night off.”
Champagnie, 23, is in a different situation than his veteran Iron Man counterparts.
A former undrafted player who the Spurs claimed off waivers from Philadelphia in February 2023, Champagnie is still trying to make a name for himself in the league.
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He can’t afford to take an unnecessary night off.
“It feels pretty good to be a part of that group and to show I’m a reliable guy when it comes to staying on the court,” Champagnie said. “Hopefully I can do that for many more years.”
Champagnie is also from New York and wears the toughness gleaned there like a badge of honor.
“I grew up playing on the playground,” Champagnie said. “If my foot’s not broken or something, we’re OK to play. That’s how I go into the games.”
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Starting guard Devin Vassell and reserve guard Keldon Johnson did not play in Phoenix due to left ankle soreness.
Vassell’s day off was a long time coming, Mitch Johnson said.
“He was on a minutes restriction and kind of holding it together,” Johnson said. “I think it was a culmination of the ankle and some other things.”
Keldon Johnson’s ailment was something that cropped up after the Spurs’ win at Golden State on Wednesday.
“We’re just kind of monitoring it,” Mitch Johnson said.
Jeremy Sochan missed his seventh consecutive game with lower back inflammation.
Mitch Johnson was not ready to rule Keldon Johnson, Vassell or Sochan out for Sunday’s finale, but the writing appears on the wall.
The loss to the Suns sealed the Spurs’ place in the NBA draft lottery, locking them in with the eighth-best odds in next month’s drawing.
From that spot, the Spurs have a 6% chance of landing the No. 1 pick for the second time in three years. They have a 26.3% chance of landing a top 4 pick for the third consecutive seasons.
The Spurs also own Atlanta’s first-round pick, the quality of which will depend on how the Hawks fare in the Eastern Conference play-in tournament.
