The San Antonio Spurs have some rebuilding to do

After trailing by 19 points after the first-quarter, the Spurs battled back in the play-in game against the Grizzlies and took the lead at one point late in the fourth quarter, but Memphis was ultimately able to hold on and they pulled out the victory, ending the Spurs season short of the postseason for the second consecutive year. 

With a ton of young talent in Dejounte Murray, Keldon Johnson, Lonnie Walker IV and Derrick White, the Spurs definitely have a foundation to build with, but they could be facing some rebuilding to do with DeMar DeRozan set to become a free agent. 

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If he departs San Antonio in the offseason, which looks highly likely at this point, then the Spurs will be left without a star player in the best conference in the league. In the Western Conference, you have to have at least one star player in order to be in the playoff conversation and while some players like Murray and White could step into much larger roles moving forward for the Spurs, they will not have the firepower they need to be a playoff team next year without DeRozan. 

As a result, going through a slight rebuilding year where the Spurs can continue to develop their young talents and possibly add another one through the draft may not be that bad of an idea. Assuming they do not jump inside of the Top-4 of the NBA Draft Lottery, San Antonio will likely be picking 12th and have a chance to add another high-caliber, young talent to their roster. 

It is clear as day that the Spurs are not the championship team they used to be a decade or so ago and while they can eventually get back to that point, it will take time for this franchise to get back to its glory days.