The San Antonio Spurs figure to take their first real step towards long-term contention this season with Victor Wembanyama.
To snap their six-year playoff drought, San Antonio will need their third-year Frenchman to take a leap, and it’s safe to assume he will.
After an offseason of training with the likes of Hakeem Olajuwon and Kevin Garnett, Wembanyama is ready to establish himself as a top player in the game.
But what about the rest of the Spurs?
Are youngsters Dylan Harper, Stephon Castle, and Jeremy Sochan ready to take a step forward?
If not, San Antonio will need to be proactive throughout the season if they feel their roster is too far behind Wembanyama.
Because the Spurs have the ammunition to make a league-altering trade.
Spurs Trade Proposal Lands Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo
In a trade idea proposed by Nathaniel Holloway of Athlon Sports, the San Antonio Spurs could go all in by acquiring Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.
San Antonio Spurs receive: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Gary Trent Jr.
Milwaukee Bucks receive: Devin Vassell, Jeremy Sochan, Keldon Johnson, Harrison Barnes and multiple first-round picks
“While trading away four key pieces to their roster in this deal would be a tough decision for the Spurs to make, swapping them for one of the best players in the league in Giannis could make them title contenders this season,” wrote Holloway.
“Of course, Giannis is an elite scorer and defender who could fit well inside next to Wembanyama, likely creating one of the best defensive frontcourts in the NBA and also bringing a new dominant frontcourt duo to San Antonio, reminiscent of the days of Tim Duncan and David Robinson.”
This proposal would be a homerun for the Spurs.
They would land Antetokounmpo without having to give up any of their recent lottery picks, Harper, and Castle.
Parting with the first-round draft capital may be difficult, but considering the pairing between Wembanyama and Antetokounmpo, those picks will be late in the 20s anyway.
This trade instantly creates a contender in San Antonio, putting the likes of the Oklahoma City Thunder on notice.
Would the Bucks Make This Deal?
While the Milwaukee Bucks would of course prefer to hang onto their homegrown superstar, he may end up forcing their hand at some point down the road.
Antetokounmpo will likely remain with the Bucks to start the 2025-26 season.
But if they struggle early, he could make things uncomfortable in Milwaukee.
The two-time league MVP becomes extension-eligible starting next summer, and he could use that leverage to force his way to a destination of his choosing.
If a team that Antetokounmpo isn’t interested in playing for looks to acquire his services, he can threaten to leave in free agency in 2027 to deter suitors.
This way, Milwaukee would have no choice but to send him where he wants to go, which could be the San Antonio Spurs if Wembanyama is the player we think he is.
At Bucks media day, the 2021 Finals MVP openly spoke about what it was like this summer pondering other destinations.
“It’s temptation. When you go through the amusement park or you go outside, and you’re not wearing your wedding ring, like me now, and people are looking at you like, ‘Oh, he’s kind of handsome.’ It’s temptation. And that starts when the season ends until the season begins,” Antetokounmpo said.
Considering his wandering eyes this summer, it’s not hard to imagine Antetokounmpo wanting to finish his illustrious career elsewhere.
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