It’s not lost on Gregg Popovich and the San Antonio Spurs that they need to add talent around stud young big man Victor Wembanyama.
Sure, he’s coming off an absolutely brilliant rookie campaign. But the Spurs as a whole struggled to another 60-loss season.
In short, there is a major talent vacuum behind Wemby on the Spurs’ roster. That’s something San Antonio is going to address this summer. Whether it’s finding young talent or veteran experience, expect a busy offseason in Texas.
That could now include San Antonio pulling off a blockbuster trade for Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star guard Darius Garland.
“Things will probably come to a head in the coming days, and several league sources shared with Right Down Euclid that if Garland demands a move to an Eastern Conference team, the Orlando Magic, the Brooklyn Nets, the Washington Wizards, and the Toronto Raptors could all enter the conversation. If it expands to the entire NBA, then similar sources shared that the San Antonio Spurs, Minnesota Timberwolves, the Utah Jazz and the New Orleans Pelicans could send Cleveland trade proposals.”
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Why Darius Garland makes perfect sense for the San Antonio Spurs
Garland is still only 24 years old. He could act as a long-term running partner for Wembanyama. It wouldn’t be a short-term fix like brining in a player such as Chris Paul who has been linked to the Spurs.
An All-Star with the Cavaliers back in 2021-22, Garland did see a bit of a downtick in production this past season. That’s primarily due to the presence of fellow All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell on the Cleveland roster.
- Darius Garland stats (2023-24): 18.0 PPG, 6.5 APG, 45% shooting, 37% 3-point
From 2021-23 with Cleveland, Garland averaged 21.6 points and 8.2 assists on 40% shooting from three-point range.
As for a potential trade, San Antonio is said to have roughly $22 million in cap room. Garland himself is making $36.7 million next season. That’s a difference of less than $15 million. Someone like Zach Collins could head to Cleveland as a salary filler.
From there, Cleveland would demand a combination of young players and draft picks. San Antonio does have two top-10 selections in this week’s NBA Draft — No. 4 and No. 8 overall.