Getty Lauri Markkanen shooting the ball over Tre Jones during a March 27 game against the San Antonio Spurs.
After a Rookie of the Year awarded season from Victor Wembanyama, the San Antonio Spurs won’t shy away from improving their roster this offseason.
Point guard is their biggest area of need, but there are other holes on the 22-60 roster. All options outside of trading Wembanyama are on the table in San Antonio.
Apparently that includes a potential deal for Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen.
In the latest odds published by Bovada, the Spurs are the betting favorite to swing a deal for the 27-year-old.
That is, should he be moved.
Markkanen is coming off his second season with the Jazz, where he averaged 23.2 points and 8.2 rebounds in 55 games.
Nothing’s been reported regarding Utah’s willingness to move him, or lack thereof.
But if he becomes available, San Antonio would be wise to try and pair Markkanen with Wembanyama in the frontcourt.
Markkanen Adds Size, Three-Point Shooting
One thing the Spurs will look to address in general is three-point shooting.
Wembanyama is already an above-average three-point shooter for his size. He finished his rookie season shooting 32-percent on 5.5 attempts per game.
But after San Antonio traded their best shooter in Doug McDermott midseason, there’s a role to be filled in the team’s top sniper.
And in Markkanen, they would add a career 37-percent shooter. He connected on 175-of-439 attempts from behind-the-arc this season.
That would have led the Spurs roster last season. Devin Vassell hit 166 to lead San Antonio.
He would also provide more size in the frontcourt next to Wembanyama, at seven-foot with a six-foot-eleven wingspan.
Drafting a Trade Proposal for Markkanen
When it comes to a potential deal between the Jazz and the Spurs, Keldon Johnson‘s salary is almost a perfect match for Markkanen’s.
It’s unlikely that alone would be enough to wet Danny Ainge’s appetite. Adding on any of San Antonio’s first-round picks, present or future, would likely get a deal done with Utah.
Jazz receive: Keldon Johnson, #8 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft
Spurs receive: Lauri Markkanen
San Antonio is armed with four picks in the upcoming draft. They have the fourth and eighth overall selections in the first round, and the 35th and 48th in the second round.
But in a weaker draft class, the Spurs walking away with four rookies is unlikely. Especially following a year where Wembanyama flexed his superstar muscles.
Utah's already home to the 10th overall pick, but the team is still without it's centerpiece talent for the future.
Two picks in the top-10 would give the Jazz more attempts at finding that player, even in an undermined draft class.
Spurs Trade Proposal Lands Brogdon
Elsewhere on the NBA market, former Sixth Man of the Year winner Malcolm Brogdon is expected to be traded this summer.
The 31-year-old veteran could provide stability for the San Antonio offense if they decided to strike a trade.
Bleacher Report’s staff proposed a deal between the Spurs and the Portland Trail Blazers where Brogdon lands with Wembanyama.
San Antonio receives: Brogdon, Robert Williams III, No. 34 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft
Portland receives: Keldon Johnson, Zach Collins
“Though he’s more of a combo guard than a true facilitator,” the website’s staff wrote on June 6. “Brogdon could play alongside Tre Jones or whomever San Antonio adds in free agency to run the point while also serving as a backup 1 when necessary.”
Brogdon averaged 15.7 points and 5.5 assists for the Trail Blazers this season.
With one year left on his contract, the eight-year veteran would be a solid stop gap option if San Antonio decides to postpone their hunt for Wembanyama’s future point guard.
When the NBA Finals conclude, the Spurs offseason will begin. The agenda is hefty, the to-do is list long, and Wembanyama’s future in San Antonio is at the center of it all.