Former Philadelphia 76ers wing Julian Champagnie certainly ended 2025 in a bang, all right. Now playing for the Spurs, the undrafted swingman absolutely shot the lights out in his year-ender outing, draining a career-high 11 three-pointers to lead the upstart Spurs to a huge victory in crunch time over the Knicks.
Champagnie, who was in a brutal shooting slump as of late, managed to save his best for the last of the calendar year, lifting San Antonio to its 24th win of the season in just 33 games with a phenomenal shooting performance. He made NBA history by being the first player ever to score 36 points without attempting a single two-point field goal, which goes to show just how good he has become in his role.
The 76ers were the team to scoop Champagnie when he went undrafted in the 2022 NBA Draft, but people will probably not even remember that. After all, his stint in Philly was as short-lived as it can get. During the 2022-23 season, he appeared in just two games for the team, spending most of his time in the G-League.
Now, Champagnie has become a star in his role for a Spurs team that is way ahead of schedule.
Former 76ers wing Julian Champagnie has emerged as a very important piece for the Spurs
Very few noticed San Antonio even picking the St. John’s product up when the 76ers waived him in the middle of their campaign, but in very impressive fashion, he managed to become one of their most important players despite having an absurdly talented core led by numerous top draft picks.
Doc Rivers, who was still at the helm for the 76ers at the time, was particularly impressed with the mix of shooting and size Champagnie had as a wing, but he never really got the chance to showcase himself. Instead, it is San Antonio that is now reaping the rewards of Champagnie’s persistence.
One of the better high-volume three-and-D players in the league, Champagnie has expanded his game that he is no longer just a volume three-point shooter (although his breakout performance against the Knicks will probably stick with him for years). At 6’7”, he is a valuable defensive piece for the Spurs with his size and length, and he is slowly gaining meaningful experience as a high-stakes defender.
Champagnie never really played enough for the 76ers to deeply regret letting him go, but the fact that they did not even try to cultivate him will probably be talked about in the future, especially if he keeps performing like this. No, he cannot possibly be banked on to swish 11 triples on a nightly basis, but his steady growth as a player with a highly desirable skill set is definitely something they could have used — there is no arguing that.