NBA Trade Grades: Spurs deal Kawhi Leonard to Raptors for DeMar DeRozan

San Antonio Spurs

Kawhi Leonard only played in nine games last year due to a right quadriceps injury and let it become public knowledge that he wanted out of San Antonio, with Los Angeles being his preferred destination.

Though reports he would sit out the entire 2018-19 season if he wasn’t moved did not come directly from Leonard, his failure to come out and set the record straight in all of this really made him come off as a prima donna, and made it increasingly difficult for the Spurs to negotiate from a position of power. What team would surrender the farm for an injury-prone and disgruntled star who might be a one-year rental if he were serious about winding up in L.A.?

San Antonio was right to hold out for better offers from asset-laden teams like the Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers, but in the end, had to settle for a lesser package thanks to the leverage Kawhi lost them.

Getting an established superstar like DeRozan for a player like Leonard is a small victory, but on the whole, the return is entirely underwhelming for the Spurs.

DeRozan is a four-time All-Star and two-time All-NBA selection. He’s arguably the greatest player in Raptors franchise history, Gregg Popovich will put him in position to be successful and he’ll only be 29 years old entering the new season. Just last year, he put up 23.0 points, 5.2 assists and 3.9 rebounds per game in a more egalitarian Toronto offense.

However, adding the modern-day king of the mid-range is bad news for a Spurs offense that already ranked 27th in 3-pointers attempted, 28th in 3-pointers made and 26th in 3-point percentage.

While the rest of the league embraces pace-and-space, San Antonio appears to be moving further away from it, and the spacing with two mid-range mongers like DDR and LaMarcus Aldridge could really cramp this team’s spacing.

He’s under contract for at least two seasons, which means the Spurs will remain competitive in the interim, but between his lack of a 3-point shot and his porous defense, this hardly represents the kind of established star that would push San Antonio back into the contender category.

Outside of DeRozan, the return on a deal for a top-five NBA star gets even more mundane. Jakob Poeltl is a solid young player, but he doesn’t have the kind of ceiling you’d expect from a young piece in a blockbuster trade.

Last year, the 22-year-old Poeltl averaged 6.9 points and 4.8 rebounds in just 18.6 minutes per game, but he fell apart in the playoffs and was nearly unplayable at that point.

Not getting OG Anunoby or Pascal Siakam — ideal players in the “Spurs mold” that could’ve really used in a rebuild — is a big loss, especially since San Antonio had to toss in another asset like Danny Green to get the job done.

Now throw in the fact that the best pick the Spurs were able to secure was a top-20 protected pick that turns into two second-rounders if it doesn’t convey in 2020, and you’ve got yourself a thoroughly disappointing return.

The Spurs didn’t get Anunoby or Siakam, had to give up one of their few 3-point marksmen in Green, were unable to unload Pau Gasol‘s contract and settled for a first-rounder with minimal value.

This trade consigns the Spurs to a fate they’re seemingly okay with: Setting up camp in NBA no-man’s land, where they’re neither good enough to make any real noise in the playoffs but far too good (and proud) to accept a full-scale rebuild.

Take one quick look at what the Spurs have lost over the last few years and it’s hard to think of anything but a crumbling empire that would make Ozymandias blush. And that’s with DeRozan on board.

Unless you’re the world’s biggest DeRozan fan or a diehard advocate for the grace of the mid-range game, the Spurs barely braced for their future without Leonard, failing to attain the future assets needed anytime a legitimate superstar is sent packing.

Kawhi Leonard was leaving soon no matter what. The supermax was never going to happen after a face-to-face meeting with Pop failed to mend bridges torn apart by differing opinions on his injury, Tony Parker‘s divisive comments and a team meeting that failed to reach him. Whether via trade or free agency next summer, the Claw was heading for a new team, with L.A. seemingly being the endgame.

The drama is over now, but it certainly took its toll on the team’s immediate outlook, its long-term future, and its ability to make those two things more positive. Watch the Spurs go out and win 60 games anyway.

Grade: C+