The day the NBA’s July moratorium ended, the Spurs made a transfer. San Antonio used its cap area to facilitate a commerce that despatched DeMar DeRozan to the Kings and acquired Harrison Barnes and a 2031 unprotected decide swap for his or her troubles.
The commerce doesn’t alter the route of the rebuild and may not end in many extra wins in itself, nevertheless it does show that the Spurs’ often-beleaguered entrance workplace not solely has a plan for the long run but additionally the current.
We’ll get to what Harrison Barnes can do for the Spurs, however first let’s have a look at how they acquired him. There have been experiences about San Antonio being a possible vacation spot for DeRozan, nevertheless it all the time felt extra doubtless that they might use their instruments to facilitate sign-and-trades as a substitute of arranging them themselves. The entrance workplace carved out potential cap room by buying and selling the eighth decide and was cautious to supply Chris Paul a contract that would match into their cap area and the mid-level exception to function as both an under-the-cap group or an over-the-cap group. In consequence, they’d the chance to retain free brokers or pounce on a possibility to get instant assist or a draft asset. They pulled off the latter, securing a rotation ahead who ought to assist in the now whereas additionally getting a future swap that would repay sooner or later. Endurance and cap flexibility are the very best mates of rebuilding groups and Brian Wright is aware of it.
By now most individuals understand that the Spurs know what they’re doing with this rebuild, however most if not all their strikes had been geared towards the lengthy view. Avoiding albatross contracts and getting decide swaps is nice, however the product on the ground had not been good, even when that includes the very best prospect in many years. This offseason’s strikes, nevertheless, present that San Antonio is prepared for section two. Getting Chris Paul, even this late in his profession, to mentor Stephon Citadel and produce order to an offense that always lacked it was an excellent transfer. However the Silver and Black nonetheless wanted one other shooter with dimension to interchange and hopefully enhance upon the duo of Cedi Osman and Doug McDermott. By getting Barnes, the entrance workplace completed that elegantly and effectively.
Barnes just isn’t going to be the distinction between the lottery and the playoffs, however he’s an incredible match for the 2024/25 Spurs. He might slot completely subsequent to Jeremy Sochan on the ahead spots, offering helpful exterior capturing after connecting 39 p.c of his exterior photographs in Sacramento final season. Sochan, in flip, might assist cowl up a number of the decline Barnes has skilled on the defensive finish. The duo can swap between who’s the interior-oriented one on offense and protection, with Barnes taking over larger forwards whereas additionally spacing the ground. The previous Warriors’ ahead transitioned into changing into a low-usage participant since changing into a King, so he received’t take away many touches from others, however he can punish a mismatch. There’s loads to love about his addition.
The principle concern with bringing in veterans to a younger group could be splitting the timeline, because the Spurs discovered throughout the DeRozan period, however proper now San Antonio is in a novel place to have the ability to juggle bettering now whereas not compromising the last word upside of its roster. Even when this group wins, say, 37 video games and lands a late lottery decide, the franchise ought to have not less than yet one more 2025 choice due to the Dejounte Murray to Atlanta commerce. Different additional picks would possibly convey and a number of swaps that would repay, together with second-rounders that might be used to get out of any contract. The Spurs didn’t waste the final two years hoping for stars however as a substitute constructed safeguards in order that they may attempt to be good within the brief time period whereas retaining the flexibility to be nice sooner or later.
Paul and now Barnes aren’t the flashiest of win-now strikes, however they signify a shift for a Spurs group that was blissful to lose to get Victor Wembanyama and keen to experiment to see what they’d final season. After what was at instances a painful efficiency within the 2023/24 season, San Antonio has constructed a strong rotation with out taking over long-term contracts or sending out first-rounders. Their ceiling proper now might be the play-in, however that’s not a nasty place to be for a group that received a mixed 44 video games within the final two seasons.
The Spurs are nonetheless in the course of their rebuild. The league doesn’t give out banners for good offseasons. Till San Antonio is a contender, the job received’t be achieved and the worst factor the entrance workplace might do is get complacent after making intelligent however small strikes.
In some unspecified time in the future, nevertheless, good work must be rewarded. A entrance workplace that had misplaced the advantage of the doubt earlier than the start of the rebuild has now greater than earned it again.