NBA's Best Young Cores in the West, Reconstructing the Kings and Spurs

Core: De’Aaron Fox (24), Keegan Murray (21)

Other players 25 and under: Kevin Huerter (23), Davion Mitchell (23), Malik Monk (24), Terence Davis (25), Chimezie Metu (25)

The Sacramento Kings seemingly set their sights on going all out in hopes of forming a contending team following their trade for Pacers’ All-Star Domantas Sabonis. The former Gonzaga Bulldog is only 26 years old, so his timeline is still aligned with the rest of the young core on the team.

To support their core, the Kings have managed to surround themselves with young talents with some level of playoff experience. In addition, the fourth overall pick, Keegan Murray, maybe the steal of the draft. The Iowa standout could be a significant contributor for Sacramento in his first year, and while that doesn’t make Sac-town a title contender right now, it does make them a threat moving forward.

The Kings are a young and talented team to keep an eye on.

Core: Keldon Johnson (22), Jeremy Sochan (19), Devin Vassell (21)

Other players 25 and under: Joshua Primo (19), Isaiah Roby (24), Tre Jones (22), Romeo Langford (22), Joe Wieskamp (22), Zach Collins (24), Malaki Branham (19), Blake Wesley (19)

The San Antonio Spurs finally decided to engage in an all-out rebuild following the departure of Demar DeRozan in 2021 and the trading of Dejounte Murray. General manager, Brian Wright, was given the thumbs up by legendary head coach, Gregg Popovich, to press the restart button.

San Antonio has done an excellent job of putting together a team full of youthful talent to surround a proven young star in Keldon Johnson. With the team loading up on picks, the Spurs will have the tools to build this squad from the ground up and hopefully contend in the near future.

The future of the NBA is in great hands, and with the talent listed above, it’s obvious this league will be very competitive moving forward.

The West will be a fun conference to watch next season, and with the talent making up these cores, it should be a dogfight every season for years to come.