Cooper Flagg has impressed within the NCAA Event, gotten Duke into the Last 4, and solidified himself as the highest choose. What number of property/present gamers would you be keen to commerce for him if San Antonio doesn’t get fortunate within the lottery?
Marilyn Dubinski: When there was no clearly outlined high prospect final 12 months, there was room to speak about swapping picks as excessive as primary. This isn’t a kind of years. Whereas Cooper Flagg isn’t any Victor Wembanyama, he’s clearly the highest choose with the potential to be a franchise participant, and groups who win the lottery don’t simply give that away. The Spurs may attempt to supply a couple of items of their younger core (Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson, Stephon Fort, and so on.) plus their very own and Atlanta’s 2025 draft picks (and certain many extra sooner or later), however neither determine to be within the high 7 at this level, and with out Wemby included, I don’t see the workforce that wins the lottery saying sure. It might be a waste of a cellphone name, similar to it was for anybody inquiring about getting the highest choose from the Spurs in 2023.
Mark Barrington: It sort seem to be a meaningless hypothetical, as a result of the workforce that will get the highest isn’t going to commerce it. I suppose you could possibly supply one thing just like the Herschel Walker commerce, however even should you may pull that off, there’s no method that would work with the NBA wage cap. There’s simply no method that whoever has the primary choose goes to provide it up except the Spurs give them Victor Wembanyama, which might trigger violence to erupt in San Antonio.
Jacob Douglas: There isn’t a package deal nice sufficient for Flagg besides one that features Wembanyama. If the workforce choosing first general was truly keen to speak trades, each choose and participant could be on the desk in addition to Wembanyama and De’Aaron Fox.
Jesus Gomez: Nobody is buying and selling Flagg, however it’s attention-grabbing to think about what the Spurs would probably have to surrender for a younger famous person in a rookie deal. To begin, the 2 picks from this 12 months’s draft, plus the remaining Atlanta picks. That, plus one or two future Spurs picks and Stephon Fort would get the opposite workforce to at the very least not dangle up instantly. Would it not be value it? Most likely, however it could be dangerous to place all of the eggs in the identical basket.
Have you ever been following the match? Has any participant stood out to you as a possible sleeper choose for the Spurs with both of their first-rounders?
Dubinski: I’m solely all for my alma mater, so I used to be finished as soon as they had been out within the second spherical. (I additionally discover school basketball very troublesome to get pleasure from once I don’t have rooting curiosity: the 20-min halves, all of the timeouts, the horrid officiating — the one factor they’ve finished proper within the final decade is decrease the lads’s shot clock from 35 to 30 sec.) I do really feel the Spurs want to deal with their lack of measurement and/or exterior taking pictures, so I’m hoping they do this whereas breaking away from the norm of going for mid-sized guards with “defensive potential”. (Not that that’s a difficulty, they simply have sufficient of these at this level.)
Barrington: Sorry, I type of checked out early when all of the groups I care about bought knocked out within the first and second rounds. I’m not a giant follower of faculty basketball, anyway, and when my favourite groups are eradicated, I’m out till the ultimate 4 weekend. Though he didn’t do nice within the match, I actually like Tre Johnson from Texas, however he’s most likely going to be gone by the point the Spurs choose.
Douglas: Kon Knueppel appears to be like like a legit ground spacer and off-ball guard with measurement. He’s held his personal defensively in system at Duke. Pairing him with Fox and Wemby could be quite a lot of enjoyable. Colorado State’s Nique Clifford is an intriguing wing who can deal with some playmaking obligations. Tre Johnson from Texas is superior however didn’t get the chance to do a lot within the NCAA Event. If the Spurs had been to get into the late first spherical or early second, Johni Broome from Auburn and Florida’s Walter Clayton Jr. are veteran school stars who I imagine will probably be superior function gamers on the subsequent degree. Broome would particularly be match given the Spurs’ want for a backup middle.
Gomez: I watch extra FIBA ball than school basketball, so I don’t have an important reply. I’ve watched Kon Knueppel play, and he appears intriguing as a shooter with measurement who may also deal with the ball. I largely watched Egor Demin highlights, and he seemed like a particular expertise, however the taking pictures numbers are a bit of scary. He could be definitely worth the danger if he drops and the Spurs go for upside.
True or false: At this level, the Spurs shouldn’t be specializing in the NCAA Event or the draft. They need to be eager about shifting their picks for veterans.
Dubinski: False. Ignoring any side of the offseason/workforce constructing course of could be a mistake. Their purpose subsequent season ought to be to make the playoffs (and I imagine they might have at the very least made the play-in this season had Wemby been wholesome), and they need to do no matter it takes to get there whereas additionally not giving up an excessive amount of of the younger core for only a 12 months or two of assist (that is me saying no to the Kevin Durant rumors). I’d be all for them probably packaging their two first spherical picks and possibly a mid-tier participant for a better choose and/or youthful veteran, however they’ll’t simply ignore the draft assuming they’ll get the deal they need. Plus, they’ll want these cheaper rookie contracts going ahead.
Barrington: False, type of. They should add a further veteran participant or two, however they may also want helpful gamers on inexpensive rookie contracts. If they’ll usher in one other large time scorer and ground spacer with draft picks, that may be superior. However there are quite a lot of holes within the roster, so that they’ll have to fill out the roster with drafted gamers as a lot as they’ll.
Douglas: False. The Spurs are nonetheless in expertise acquisition mode, whether or not that be through the draft, commerce, or free company. They nonetheless have to construct the long-term core round Wembanyama. They took benefit of state of affairs within the Fox commerce and seemingly landed a long-term piece in Fort. This summer season, they may draft the following long-term piece or commerce picks for the star participant subsequent to Wemby. The entrance workplace ought to be, and certain is, contemplating all avenues to enhance the roster.
Gomez: False. Blake Wesley and Malaki Branham will enter the final 12 months of their rookie contract. So will Jeremy Sochan. Julian Champagnie solely has another 12 months on his team-friendly deal. A few of the cost-controlled gamers will probably be gone quickly, so even when they don’t get a star, they may get an necessary piece that makes constructing round Wemby simpler. San Antonio wants expertise, and the draft is an efficient method to get it, however even from a cap administration and roster building standpoint, it simply is sensible to get some low cost depth items.
