San Antonio Spurs: 3 outside-the-box trades for DeMar DeRozan

San Antonio Spurs trade partner No. 1: Detroit Pistons

Yeah, kind of had to mention this one, didn’t I?

As unlikely as I think it is that this trade goes through, every site talking about the DeRozan trade rumors has the Detroit Pistons pegged as the favorite as far as partners go. Why? Head coach Dwane Casey.

Casey coached DeRozan during his time with the Toronto Raptors, even infamously being let go by the Raptors the very summer he won Coach of the Year. To make things more interesting, the year Casey was let go was the same one DeRozan was traded, so it’s likely that he had little to do with the move, and that there isn’t too much bad blood.

Still, the Pistons aren’t exactly at a surplus of great talent that they could swap with San Antonio, so going after DeRozan would cost them.

The biggest hit for Detroit here would be the loss of Christian Wood, who they would have to do a sign-and-trade with. However, while the Spurs may be wise to swap DeRozan, they should still understand that there’s an asking price for him. Having a package of Tony Snell, John Henson, and Detroit’s 2020 first round pick is a little low, so, it came down to Wood or Luke Kennard, and I think the Pistons would have an easy time parting with someone who has a high risk of leaving in the offseason anyways.

With DeRozan, the Pistons form a nice looking DeRozan/Derrick Rose/Blake Griffin tandem who could prove dangerous to unprepared defenses, as well as serving as a potentially nice landing spot for interested free agents. They’d also receive a 2022 first round pick, likely still coming in the lower lottery (probably 8-14).

For San Antonio, the combination of Wood and Snell give them a little bit of a modern touch with some great outside shooting, while the addition of John Henson could prove beneficial on the defensive side of the ball. A side which the Spurs are desperately lacking.

While the asking price may be high, DeMar DeRozan has proven himself to be a valuable commodity on any team, and would likely command a high asking price from whomever is looking to trade for him. And, at the end of the day, that might be the biggest benefit to the organization should they decide to trade him. The San Antonio Spurs could recoup some youth and financial freedom, as well as potential get a little more than what they gave up.