NBA: Power ranking the 17 most dynamic young cores with the highest upside

Who are the best young cores in the NBA heading into the 2024-25 season?

San Antonio Spurs v Dallas Mavericks
San Antonio Spurs v Dallas Mavericks | Ron Jenkins/GettyImages
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1. San Antonio Spurs

Young core: Victor Wembanyama, Keldon Johnson, Devin Vassell, Stephon Castle, Jeremy Sochan, Malaki Branham

It should come as little surprise to see the San Antonio Spurs and their young core sitting atop this list. As one of the teams with the brightest future in the NBA, you can't begin to speak about the Spurs' young core without talking about Victor Wembanyama. Wemby is truly a generational talent and there's a very real chance he is the face of basketball and the best player in the world in the next 2-3 seasons. That's how good and how much potential he has heading into just his second season in the NBA.

To add to Wemby's intrigue, the Spurs have done a solid job of adding young talent around him. While it remains to be seen which young players will emerge as foundational building blocks next to the generational big, the front office has certainly given head coach Gregg Popovich plenty of options heading into the 2024-25 season.

Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell are two of the most productive supporting players around Wemby and after taking Stephon Castle with their top 5 pick, the hope is that he can develop into the team's long-term answer at the point guard position.