How This Trade Impacts The Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are stuck in a bit of an awkward spot currently. They are never going to go into a full teardown and rebuild as long as Gregg Popovich is running the show. San Antonio is always going to put out as competitive a product as they can.
The team has seen a mass exodus of veterans in the last few months. They parted ways with LaMarcus Aldridge during the season and didn’t re-sign DeMar DeRozan, Patty Mills or Rudy Gay. If San Antonio decides they want to add a veteran presence to the team that could help them contend for a playoff spot, Russell Westbrook makes for an intriguing target.
Westbrook is still a gamer. He brings it every night and the Spurs could use another playmaker with DeRozan, their leading assist man from last season, and Mills no longer on the team. Westbrook would be able to run the show in San Antonio.
Along with him, San Antonio would be getting another solid veteran in Kent Bazemore. He would provide the team with reliable 3-point shooting, something they have lacked. He would also be a great mentor for players such as Lonnie Walker IV, Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell.
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Earlier in the offseason, it was being reported that the Spurs were open to trading Dejnoute Murray and Derrick White for the right price. It is anyone’s guess if Westbrook, Bazemore and a 2023 second-round pick would be considered the ‘right price’, but the team would certainly be a tougher out with Westbrook at the helm.
San Antonio would also be getting some future salary relief, as Murray and White have contracts that run for three and four more seasons. Westbrook coming off the books by 2023 would give the organization a clean slate to work with once some of their young players are coming up for extensions.
