Lakers Trade for Patrick Beverley; Will Spurs Veterans Be Moved?
The Los Angeles Lakers and Utah Jazz are reportedly nearing a trade agreement on a deal that would feature Patrick Beverley teaming up with LeBron James. The Lakers will send out Talen Horton-Tucker and Stanley Johnson to acquire Beverley.
With the NBA no longer waiting to see what unfolds from the Kevin Durant trade saga following his recommitment to the Brooklyn Nets, there appears to be significant potential for smaller-scale trade agreements to be reached.
The San Antonio Spurs did move on from Dejounte Murray early in the offseason using a trade with the Atlanta Hawks. The move featured a haul of future draft capital to help jumpstart the rebuilding process while moving the All-Star guard. There are still potential moves to be made.
As it currently stands, the Spurs have three veteran players that are prime trade candidates. It begins with Jakob Poeltl, who is entering the final year of his current contract after a career-year averaging 13.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 2.8 assists.
Poeltl will be 27 by the start of the upcoming regular season, meaning he will be 28 when he starts his next contract. While there is a case to be made that a short-term contract agreement could benefit both sides as the Spurs rebuild, capitalizing on trade value before Poeltl could potentially depart for nothing seems ideal.
Other veteran players the Spurs could trade include Doug McDermott and Josh Richardson. Both talents could bring needed attributes to a contending franchise. Much like Poeltl, Richardson is entering the final year of his current contract. He will be 29 by the start of this season.
While Richardson had a down shooting year with the Dallas Mavericks in 2020-21 shooting just 33.0 percent, he's found his form since. He shot 41.5 percent in 65 appearances last season and particularly shot 44.4 percent from deep in the 21 games he played for the Spurs after the midseason trade.
McDermott is a perimeter sharpshooter with motion shooting talent and possesses underrated cutting ability. He is signed for $13.75 million for the 2023-24 season, and there is some overlap at the four spot now with Jeremy Sochan and other young talents the Spurs recently acquired. He'd be best suited for a contender.
There hasn't been recent reporting linking the Spurs' veterans to any potential trade destinations, but they each are names to watch throughout the 2022-23 campaign. San Antonio has proven to value patience with trade conversations as opposed to rushing into a trade agreement for the sake of moving a veteran.
You can follow Grant Afseth on Twitter at @GrantAfseth.
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