Jakob Poeltl – San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are looking to take their franchise in a new direction with their young talents, resulting in them likely missing the playoffs for a third consecutive year. It seems unlikely that they will be looking to move either Dejounte Murray or Derrick White right now, but Jakob Poeltl is definitely an interesting name to keep an eye on.
Poeltl signed a three-year, $26.2M deal with the Spurs before the start of last season and with one year left on his deal after this season, the 26-year-old big man has suddenly become an eyebrow raising trade target for some teams around the league.
In 12 games this season, Jakob Poeltl is averaging career-highs in points (12.5), rebounds (9.3), assists (2.0), field goals made per game (5.8) and field goal attempted per game (9.3). Poeltl is also shooting 63.1% from the floor and is averaging about 1.3 blocks per game.
The 7’1” big man has really carved out a key role in the Spurs rotation over the years and brings a lot of value to his team, hence why he could be a solid fit in Charlotte. However, when comparing him to Mason Plumlee, it is hard to see where the Hornets would be bettering themselves.
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Jakob Poeltl is not much of an athlete at the center position and he is more of a traditional center like Plumlee is the case that he cannot step out on the perimeter to make plays. He excels at setting screens and playing in the low-post, but his upside on offense is very limited and once again, the question becomes what would the Hornets give up to acquire him?
With the Spurs rebuilding, they are going to want a lot of value for their young center, especially since he is one of their core building blocks for the future.
P.J. Washington, Kai Jones and James Bouknight could once again be players that the Hornets would have to give up and for a lateral move from Plumlee to Jakob Poeltl, this is not necessarily a smart move.
Jakob Poeltl is a really strong center that can definitely average a double-double over the course of a season, but the value he would bring to a team like the Hornets is very minimal.
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He is not the difference in this team winning a playoff series and given that he is not much different of a player compared to Mason Plumlee, who the Hornets already have as their center, I am going to say “pass” on this one.
Verdict: Pass
