Zach Collins reaches 2-year, $35 million extension with Spurs ahead of Victor Wembanyama era
The Spurs, now led by No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama, will open their season on Wednesday night
Zach Collins and the San Antonio Spurs agreed to a two-year, $35 million contract extension Sunday, his agent told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The extension will keep Collins in San Antonio through the 2025-26 season, and lock down another teammate to help the Spurs build around No. 1 overall draft pick Victor Wembanyama long term.
Collins got his start with the Portland Trail Blazers, though he has struggled in the past few seasons due to various ankle injuries. The Trail Blazers first selected Collins with the No. 10 overall pick out of Gonzaga in 2017 via a draft night trade with the Sacramento Kings. He worked his way into the starting lineup by his third season in Portland, but he played just 11 games that season and missed all of the 2020-21 campaign due to ankle injuries that led to multiple surgeries.
After his rookie deal expired, Collins signed a three-year deal with the Spurs and made his debut with the team in February 2022. He played all of last season for the first time in four years, and averaged a career-high 11.6 points and 6.4 rebounds. He’s averaged 14.2 points per game in the preseason this fall.
The Spurs also signed guards Devin Vassell and Tre Jones to contract extensions this offseason. Vassell signed a five-year, $135 million extension earlier this month. The 23-year-old averaged a career-high 18.5 points and 3.9 rebounds per game last season, his third in the league. Jones signed a two-year, $20 million extension with the Spurs earlier this summer. He averaged a career-high 12.9 points and 6.6 assists per game last season.
Those three extensions undoubtedly help the Spurs build their lineup around Wembanyama, who is the most-anticipated NBA rookie since LeBron James entered the league in 2003. The Spurs went just 22-60 last season, and missed the playoffs for a fourth straight season.
San Antonio will open its season Wednesday against the Dallas Mavericks.
