Several contenders have inquired about Spurs’ Thaddeus Young
With DeMar DeRozan being traded to the Chicago Bulls this offseason in a sign-and-trade agreement, Thaddeus Young was sent to the San Antonio Spurs. Now entering Year 15 in the NBA, the 33-year-old forward has silently become one of the best all-around talents from the 2007 NBA Draft and is still a key veteran who can help a contending team this year.
Thaddeus Young is not a franchise-altering talent by any means, but in terms of being a secondary or bench talent, there is no reason why he cannot be an impactful force for almost any team in this league in the frontcourt. In San Antonio, he could continue to be this kind of player, but the Spurs are going to be rebuilding and focusing on developing their young talents.
As a result, there has been a lot of talk about Thaddeus Young being on the trade block entering training camp and ESPN’s Zach Lowe recently wrote that multiple contending teams have been interested in the veteran big man.
Being owed $14.1M this season, it is not necessarily “easy” for a playoff threat to trade for the veteran, but it is definitely do-able for some teams.
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The Knicks, Suns and Mavericks could free up the necessary cap space to bring in Young by moving some contracts on their roster and both the Celtics and Pelicans have $17M trade exceptions they could use to absorb Thaddeus Young’s contract.
Given that the Spurs are heading in a new direction after two decades of dominance, Thaddeus Young really does not hold a role on this team right now other than being one of their better overall producers and a mentor for young talents.
At this point in his career, Young is probably okay being in this type of role, but would much rather be on a playoff team where he has a shot to contend for a title.
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Coming off a season in which he averaged 12.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.1 steals and shot 55.9% from the floor, the Spurs could get some solid value for Thaddeus Young right now, which is why he is likely to be moved soon.
Maybe the Spurs hold onto him until the NBA trade deadline, but it is hard to believe that they will not look to capitalize on Thaddeus Young’s value while it is higher than usual.
