Spurs take long-term upside swing with Jayden Quaintance
Spurs take long-term upside swing with Jayden QuaintanceYahoo Sports’ Draft Live crew breaks down the 20th overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft as the Kentucky big man is heading to San Antonio.2:50Now PlayingPaused
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Spurs take long-term upside swing with Jayden Quaintance
Yahoo Sports’ Draft Live crew breaks down the 20th overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft as the Kentucky big man is heading to San Antonio.
Video Transcript
Jaden Quaintance- Wow going to the Spurs, the forward out of Kentucky.
AdvertisementAdvertisementYou, you, you mentioned him.
You're right, you called it.
Yeah, I mean, I think what the move here- is that they, they know that they can take a chance here, even if it's a New Orleans Noel situation or a, a Ben Simmons situation.
Blake Griffin, where he'd take off for the first year.
A- Joel Embiid is another name where i- if you look at Quaintance, you're not getting him for next season, you're getting him for down the road.
Yeah.
And they need an upgrade at the four position.
I don't know if his future is at the four or the five, but certainly if you're the Victor Wembanyama Spurs, you need as much back court help as you can get, and this is one of those high upside picks.
AdvertisementAdvertisementA guy who- Yeah coming into this year was, I think, a high lottery pick.
I mean, to me, this is the, the biggest surprise so far of the draft.
Jaden Quaintance, there were a lot of talk, with sources around the league in the lead up that he could fall to 27, 28, potentially even out of the first round, given the amount of concerns about- Yeah his surgically operated on knee with a torn meniscus, torn ACL, and he still has a lot of issues.
He hasn't been able to play three on three workouts.
He's still not landing on that surgically operated knee.
So there's concern there he might, as Tom alluded to, have to miss his entire rookie year if he does need more work done on it.
AdvertisementAdvertisementThat said, if there's any team that's gonna take a big, big, big, big swing here- San Antonio, you can't do any better for a guy who can play next to Victor Wembanyama or back up Victor Wembanyama for many years to come.
Jaden Quaintance, we saw his freshman year playing at 17 years old at Aris- Ole- Arizona State as one of the most versatile, dominant defensive players.
Offensively, he's somebody more of a traditional big, but he can handle the ball a little bit, go coast to coast after defensive boards.
There's some skill level here on top of a floor as a highly versatile defensive player.
So I think for San Antonio, even though there's a great element of risk here, this pick very well might not work out.
AdvertisementAdvertisementTo me, it is worthy of a swing for San Antonio when their hopes are to get over the top and actually win an NBA finals in the years to come.
You, and when he's healthy, this might be the best defender in the class.
This might be.
Yeah.
This might be the, the best defender in the class when he is healthy.
But the last part of my statement is what the biggest concern is.
When he is healthy.
He hasn't been.
Yeah.
But his sample size of when he's on the floor at Arizona State, more so than Kentucky, he was elite.
Yeah.
He impacted the game in a way that we haven't really seen a player be able to do in college basketball last season.
Mm-hmm.
So, or the season that he was playing, which was two years ago, essentially.
But I don't hate this pick.
Because if he does pan out- Yeah if he does get healthy, to be able to back up Wemby, now you have an extra layer of rim protection
- Spurs take long-term upside swing with Jayden QuaintanceYahoo Sports’ Draft Live crew breaks down the 20th overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft as the Kentucky big man is heading to San Antonio.2:50Now PlayingPaused
- Post-lottery mock draft: Jayden Quaintance to the Lakers1:07Now PlayingPaused
- Spurs' first round picks signal a plan to save Victor Wembanyama for the playoffs0:46Now PlayingPaused
- Thunder draft a 'Wemby stopper,' then Spurs counter amid 'arms race' in the West2:15Now PlayingPaused
- Could Jayden Quaintance replace Mitchell Robinson for the Knicks?1:11Now PlayingPaused
- Tarris Reed is ‘rock solid’ addition for Spurs3:07Now PlayingPaused
- 2026 NBA Draft first round recap: Surprises and steals from Brooklyn1:40Now PlayingPaused
- Yaxel Lendeborg may be missing piece for the Spurs2:05Now PlayingPaused
Badenoch blasts 'moaning' female Labour MPs over Burnham jobs 'quota'
Kemi Badenoch has told Labour women to earn a job in Andy Burnham's Cabinet instead of demanding they are handed jobs because of their gender.
The Tory leader lashed out today amid reports that female MPs are demanding the de-facto new prime minister introduce a 50:50 gender split 'quota' in his government.
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister also complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts.
But in a scathing article in the Times today Mrs Badenoch told them to 'stop moaning' and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'.
'There are many, many reasons why you shouldn't have any Milibands in the cabinet,' she said.
'But complaining that the boys haven't given them the right jobs or that the boys are taking all the jobs, just shows that Labour's women still don't get it.'
The idea of quotas was also attacked by Baroness Jacqui Smith, Labour's Skills Minister.
Asked by Times Radio if Mr Burnham should reserve jobs for women, she said: 'No, I think what Andy Burnham should be doing is building the very best team around him to change this country.'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband (above, right, in 2010) is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts
But Mrs Badenoch told them to pipe down and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party and seen by the BBC has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs after he succeeds Sir Keir Starmer.
'We are asking you to demonstrate this change from day one and address the toxicity and misogyny within our own party and government,' it said.
Labour has never had a female leader, while the Conservatives have had three, and Mrs Badenoch urged the government to follow its meritocratic example.
'If you run a meritocracy, then you do not have to worry about jobs for the boys,' she wrote.
'Every woman who is a Conservative MP, every woman who has ever won the leadership, has had to fight to get where she is.
'By contrast, Labour women are demanding guarantees from Burnham. But the truth is he doesn't have to give any guarantees.
'If none of Labour's women are prepared to get their hands dirty and challenge him for the leadership, their demands are toothless.'
'In fact, it's quite revealing that the women's parliamentary Labour Party has written to Burnham asking him to commit himself to at least 50 per cent female ministers.
'This has nothing to do with meritocracy. It is yet more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country.'
