Spurs 2024 Draft grade: San Antonio takes Harrison Ingram at 48

06/27/2024 07:45 PM

The Spurs get a versatile wing with their final selection of the draft.

The San Antonio Spurs came into the 2024 NBA Draft with some clear needs. They needed to gather more talent to fill out their roster, help at the guard position and on the wings. You could argue that their first round selection, Stephon Castle, checked all three of those boxes. In the second round, they added another versatile wing, selecting Harrison Ingram with the 48th pick.

Draft Grade: B

Harrison Ingram, 6-foot-6 wing, North Carolina

2023-2024 stats: 12.2 points, 2.2 assists, 8.8 rebounds, 43% FG, 38.5% 3PT, 61.2%

Ingram is an intriguing do-it-all wing from UNC. In his junior season with the Tar Heels he made an All-ACC team, and helped the team earn a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament. Ingram is a big, strong wing at 6-foot-6, 233 pounds. He has a 7-foot wingspan which fits with the a Spurs team that is moving toward length and versatility.

Ingram is a physical player who can use his size to create angles for himself on the boards. He's an aggressive player with solid athleticism. He showed the capability to switch onto faster guards and guard bigger players at the collegiate level. He's a smart off-ball defender who was constantly rotating to block shots or take charges. Prior to his time at UNC, he was used as a ball-handler in the pick-and-roll at Stanford. Ingram averaged 5.3 assists as a Sophomore, showing that he could have some upside as a secondary playmaker.

The biggest leap Ingram took at UNC came from deep. He shot below 32% in his first two college seasons, but hit 38.5% of his threes as a Junior. He still only made 61.2% of his free throws, showing that last year could have been an anomaly. His shooting will be something to watch during summer league. If he can space the floor with his shooting while playing on the interior, the Spurs may have themselves a nice role player. Ingram has a capped ceiling due to his inability to create space off the dribble. Currently he profiles as a three-and-D wing who can do a bit of playmaking.

San Antonio can use all of the wing depth they can get their hands on. Ingram gives them another switchable player who has shown some ability to hit shots from deep. He also gives them a tough interior player who can do some dirty work and rebound next to Victor Wembanyama. Ingram will find himself in competition with Sidy Cissoko, Julian Champagnie, Malaki Branham and potentially another veteran player for wing minutes next season.

Given that competition and the Spurs eagerness to remain cap flexibility, Ingram could be coming to San Antonio on a two-way contract. They could treat him similarly to Cissoko last year by letting him spend a season in Austin getting more on-ball reps to develop as a passer and scorer. No matter how they decide to utilize him next season, Ingram is a solid addition so late in the draft.