The San Antonio Spurs might have to trade De’Aaron Fox after some of his mistakes made him a hated figure to many fans. San Antonio choked a couple of large leads against the New York Knicks due to everyone making mistakes, but Fox had some moments that can’t be defended in any context. Factor in that Fox’s massive contract extension hasn’t even started yet, and there may be reason to move on now.
CBS Sports’ Sam Quinn believes the Toronto Raptors might be the only realistic trade partner this summer:
“Toronto has been linked to several big names over the past year. Fox isn’t an ideal fit as a shaky shooter, but he’s a major talent upgrade over their current guards, and the Spurs are one of the few teams that would likely be interested in one of their shakier contracts.
Immanuel Quickley is overpaid at $32.5 million per year for the next three years, but he’s uniquely valuable to the Spurs since he’s been a very effective bench player in the past, his contract expires a year earlier than Fox’s and therefore doesn’t overlap with (Dylan) Harper’s eventual rookie extension, and even if he’s overpaid, he makes so much less than Fox that those savings could be beneficial in other ways.”
Quinn acknowledges that Fox isn’t a perfect fit for Toronto, but his talent does make him an upgrade. San Antonio would have to believe in Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper as the starting guards from next season to pull the trigger on this deal.
Examining Toronto’s Trade Package For Fox
The idea floated out there by Quinn would see a one for one trade of San Antonio adding Immanuel Quickley. Spurs management would want to take on a shorter contract and utilize a player more known for his bench role.
Quickley and Keldon Johnson would provide two top bench scorers for San Antonio, but the bigger takeaway focuses on Harper. The postseason saw Harper outplaying Fox in almost every series to show he’s not too young to take over the starting point guard slot.
Toronto would want to add Fox to the core of Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, and Brandon Ingram as a strong top four names. The Spurs would risk losing talent and hope that Quickley’s more natural bench role helps them.
Biggest Risk For San Antonio Spurs
San Antonio is risking losing the much better player to help their finances for the future. Victor Wembanyama, Castle, and Harper will all require big contracts in a couple of seasons to warrant making moves now to better prepare for that.
Fox is expected to make between $50 million and $60 million each season over the next four years as a brutal contract. The Spurs would be going out of their way to lose talent in favor of prioritizing money right after they shockingly made the NBA Finals in a Fox trade.
Quickley could become an even worse contract since Fox has at least shown the ability to play All-Star basketball. A good scorer who offers little elsewhere would make Quickley a risky play for the Spurs to potentially take steps back right when they became relevant again.
Raptors Viewed As Spurs Best Option For De’Aaron Fox Trade