A lot went down on the trade deadline.
So much so that I had to take some to process and unravel everything that went on.
And now that I have, I’m going to have to say that the San Antonio Spurs made the best moves.
Now, I know you are going to chew my head off for that statement.
You’re going to bring up the Kevin Durant trade. You’re going to bring up the Kyrie Irving trade. You’re going to bring up all of the moves the Los Angeles Lakers made. And you’re probably going to bring up the Clippers’ moves.
And all of these trades were fantastic.
KD and the Suns have a really good chance of winning the championship this year (and probably the next one as well). Kyrie will make the Mavs better and a threat in the playoffs. And the Lakers and Clippers are deeper and more talented, and the new players provide all of the skills that the teams need.
But the Spurs’ moves can make them better in the future for a long time.
Right now, they are second last in the Western Conference. And by trading away Jakob Poetl and Josh Richardson, they’ll definitely stay in that spot (or even move down).
And if they do, they’ll have a really good chance at attaining that first overall pick.
And with that pick (or even the first 3, really), they’ll be able to draft some really good talent to play with the young talent that’s already on the team.
Additionally, the Spurs received a bunch of first-round picks that will end in 2028. What that means is that they will have at least two first-round picks from 2023 to 2028. They also got a bunch of second-round picks, too.
Most of these picks, however, are protected.
Some are top-6 protected and some are top-16 protected. But historically, the Spurs do such a good job at scouting that they’ll be able to find some gems in the latter parts of the draft (ie. Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Dejounte Murray, Keldon Johnson, etc.).
They could also use some of these picks to swap for role players or vets or maybe even a superstar in sign-and-trade deals.
I will add, though, that the Utah Jazz also made great deals at the trade deadline. But the reason why I’m going with the Spurs is that I’m biased.
But honestly, I truly think the picks the Spurs got are better and that their young core has more potential than the Jazz’s.
Final Thoughts
I will add that this is just my speculation based on what the organization has done in the past.
But if history does repeat itself, the Spurs are on the verge of building another dynasty.
And that will be awesome.
Do you think the Spurs did a good job at the trade deadline? If not, then who do you think did the best job?