BREAKING: Spurs' Doug McDermott Traded to Pacers
The San Antonio Spurs are making a move.
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Spurs are trading Doug McDermott to the Indiana Pacers for Marcus Morris.
Shams Charania of The Athletic is reporting that the Spurs are going to buy out Morris.
As a rebuilding team, the Spurs can trade some of their assets for future draft compensation or young players to help build around No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama.
Dec 28, 2023; Portland, Oregon, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Doug McDermott (17) dribbles the ball during the second half against Portland Trail Blazers guard Skylar Mays (5) at Moda Center.
© Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports
ESPN's Brian Windhorst lists Doug McDermott as the player the Spurs are most likely to trade.
"This is an ideal type of trade deadline deal," Windhorst writes. "A 45% 3-point shooter on a team going nowhere this season with a $14 million expiring contract."
McDermott, 32, is averaging 6.1 points per game for the Spurs this season while playing 15.3 minutes per game.
The Spurs will certainly listen to offers on McDermott, and if they don't find one they like, San Antonio could certainly negotiate a buyout with him. McDermott is making $13.75 million this season, which could behoove teams not to trade for him. That being said, any contender looking for outside shooting could make sense for McDermott.
A trade featuring a matching salary and a future second-round pick would be worth it for the Spurs if they can get some kind of value for McDermott before he likely walks away in free agency to go sign elsewhere.
The NBA Trade Deadline is set for Thursday at 2 p.m. CT.
