SALT LAKE CITY - The name of the game is "Eight Spots." Julian Champagnie knows it pretty well. He wouldn't stop playing until he knew he was the best at it.
The San Antonio Spurs forward spent a good portion of his summer honing the 3-point shot that helped propel San Antonio to the NBA Finals. Champagnie joined Brandon Payne, long-time trainer of Golden State Warriors star Steph Curry, for several workouts alongside his twin brother, Justin, and other NBA sharpshooters.
Payne had a hard time putting the drill into words that made sense to non-shooting coaches, but, in essence, players have to make one corner 3-pointer from each side of the key to claim one spot. After that, they progress to seven more spots with corner shots in-between.
Once all eight spots have been claimed, the clock stops. Two minutes is considered standard. 2:15 is slightly worrisome, and anything under two minutes is "really good."
Champagnie now holds the record with a time of 1:46. Curry is No. 2, followed by Trae Young, Tyler Herro and Justin, among other participants - the latter three in no particular order.
"I shot it pretty well," Champagnie said modestly.
Oct 27, 2026; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Julian Champagnie (30) smiles after making a shot in the first half against the Sacramento Kings at Frost Bank Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Payne admitted he didn't know much about Champagnie prior to San Antonio's playoff run in the spring. Once he tuned in, the long-time trainer said he was "blown away." Watching him work in person put the 25-year-old's work ethic into perspective.
"He was so resilient and competitive," Payne said on the "Basketball Illuminati" podcast. "I learned a lot about how tough he is as a shooter. How willing he is to learn and get better."
Champagnie took what he learned from Payne and Curry into his fourth full season with the Spurs, hoping to build upon the best shooting year of his career, not counting piecemealed rookie year. Tuesday night offered a glimpse of what that work could produce.
In 13 first-half minutes against the Sacramento Kings at Frost Bank Center, Champagnie logged 24 points and helped the Spurs build a 26-point lead. He made eight shots: all 3s.
"I got a bunch of open ones today," Champagnie explained after the Spurs' 130-103 win. "I feel like that was a product of us moving the basketball well and playing to our standards."
Champagnie finished the night with 26 points after adding a fast-break layup to his scoring total midway through the fourth quarter. He missed all three of his attempts from beyond the arc after halftime, but San Antonio was well out of Sacramento's reach by then.
"We came out and we did exactly what we were supposed to do," Champagnie said. "Hopefully, we just continue to build off of it."
Since the start of the season, the Spurs have preached a need to settle into their offense, communicate on defense and play with stronger effort than they showed against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets - two losses that, together, served as a wake-up call for a team "drunk" off the success it experienced a season ago .
Champagnie, who is back in a bench role after Mitch Johnson's decision to start Dylan Harper alongside De'Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle, has so far been one of the Spurs' more consistent weapons. On his hottest night of the season so far, they exploited it.
"I thought our team did a good job of recognizing where he was once he got going," Johnson said. "We've had some time in the last few years where I think we've done a poor job of that, and not intentionally ... I think we've grown in that aspect a little bit."
Oct 12, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Julian Champagnie (30) passes the ball during the first half against the Utah Jazz at Delta Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Asked about Johnson's assessment, Champagnie agreed. He does feel like his teammates have had an easier time feeding him, largely due to their familiarity with each other.
"Over the past couple years," Champagnie began, "we've just grown the chemistry, grown the relationships. We all know where we want to be on the court, where we are on the court. I think it's a product of that ... without them, I'm not going to be making (any) shots."
For the rest of the Spurs, watching Champagnie get hot doesn't get old.
"Love that for him," Victor Wembanyama said. "I love when he gets to take 10-plus 3s."
The Spurs now head to Utah looking to extend their winning streak against a shorthanded Jazz squad, continuing an early-season stretch in which they've yet to play consecutive games in the same arena. As far as Champagnie is concerned, it doesn't matter where he plays.
Whether in a quiet gym over the summer or in front of thousands of fans, Champagnie will keep shooting. Johnson just hopes his teammates continue to find him when he's hot.
"We're not going to force things," the coach said. "We want to play organically, but (also) have that awareness when one of your teammates has it going, whether that's gravity that can help the next thing, or continue to ride that wave, so to speak."
This article was originally published on www.si.com/nba/spurs/onsi as How Julian Champagnie's Summer Shooting Work is Already Paying Off for Spurs .
