The San Antonio Spurs are in the midst of the longest playoff drought in franchise history as they have missed the postseason three straight years. In the last two years, they have lost in the first game of the NBA Play-In Tournament.
As one of the few teams projected to have cap space to spend in free agency this offseason in the NBA, the Spurs will be looking to upgrade their roster to hopefully snap that streak. There is some good, young talent on this roster, but the team could use some help in the frontcourt.
One intriguing target, according to a former executive that spoke to NBA Analysis Network, is T.J. Warren. Warren is expected to draw a ton of attention from contending teams that don’t have much cap space to spend, so San Antonio can blow all of those offers out of the water should they want Warren bad enough.
“San Antonio needs a modern four and that’s why the OG Anunoby talk makes sense. They also need a volume scorer and that’s why Zach LaVine has been a hot name, but that isn’t likely to pan out. If they don’t want to trade a lot of value to fill that need, Warren would be a good gamble. He could fill that four spot and be a volume scorer next to Murray.”
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Warren has played in only four games the last two seasons as he recovers from a foot injury. It was terrible timing for him, as he was one of the best players in the Orlando Bubble in 2020. Warren was unstoppable, scoring at will no matter what opponents threw at him defensively.
He was taking his game to another level as he entered his prime seasons. The Indiana Pacers had to be excited about what they were seeing, but the injuries have derailed his ascension. As the executive noted, Warren was finally figuring things out.
“Warren has always been tough to stop when he drives to the basket. He’s a legit 6’8″ and plays with a lot of force… He’s always been tough in the in-between game with mid-range and floaters. His 3-ball has gotten a lot better since his Suns days, too. There’s a lot to like there; that’s for sure.”
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In addition to the blossoming offensive game, Warren was beginning to put more effort into his defense. He was improving steadily on that end of the court as well, developing into the two-way wing that the Phoenix Suns envisioned he could be when they selected him 14th overall in the 2014 NBA Draft.
Turning 29 in September, Warren still has plenty of great basketball ahead of him. He could be one of the biggest steals in free agency this offseason, as his situation entering the market is similar to the Golden State Warriors landing Otto Porter Jr. last season and becoming an integral part of their run back to the NBA Finals.
