The San Antonio Spurs entered the summer with NBA rumors linking them to point guard and center among the positions the front office would be targeting this summer. After making NBA news by signing point guard Chris Paul, San Antonio seems to be turning its focus to another target
Paul will be the Spurs point guard for the 2024’25 season, both serving as a mentor to first-round pick Stephon Castle and serving as the on-court floor general. Adding the future Hall of Famer received glowing reviews from around the league, with high expectations for what Paul will be able to do for Victor Wembanyama and Devin Vassell moving forward.
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Adding Paul and Castle also ended any Spurs rumors tying the team to a trade for an All-Star point guard like Trae Young. Instead, San Antonio appears to be turning its focus to another position of need.
According to Matt Moore of Action Network, the Spurs are among the teams interested and involved in discussions with the Milwaukee Bucks on a trade for Brook Lopez.
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Lopez, age 36, popped up in NBA rumors in June when Milwaukee began shopping him. The 7-foot-1 big man is a year removed from earning NBA All-Defensive First Team honors, but he wasn’t as impactful this past season with the Bucks.
- Brook Lopez stats (2023-’24): 12.5 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 1.6 APG, 2.4 BPG
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San Antonio obviously wouldn’t get a ton of scoring production from Lopez. He recorded a career-low 16 percent Usage rate this past season and it was at 19.3 percent the previous year. However, even well into his 30s, Lopez is still very good defensively.
- San Antonio Spurs future draft picks: 2025 1st CHA (Lottery protected), 2025 1st SA, 2025 1st ATL, 2025 1st CHI (Top 10 protected), 2025 2nd SA, 2025 2nd NOP, 2025 2nd CHI, 2026 1st SA, 2026 1st ATL (swap rights), 2026 2nd UTA, 2026 2nd SA, 2027 1st ATL, 2027 1st SA
He ranked sixth among centers in FiveThirtyEight’s TOTAL Rator (+4.2), just behind Kristaps Porzingis, in large part because he led all NBA centers in Defensive Raptor (+5.0). Lopez also recorded the fourth-best Wins Above replacement (9.1) at his position, besting Porzingis (8.2), Domantas Sabonis (8.4) and Bam Adebayo (7.0).
While multiple teams are interested in Lopez, the Spurs are well-positioned to compete in a bidding war for him. If he’s acquired, the combo of Wembanyama and Lopez will be the best defensive frontcourt in the NBA next season.
