16 Players that will likely change teams by the NBA trade deadline
By Cal Durrett
5. Jakob Poeltl, San Antonio Spurs
Soon to be unrestricted free agent Jakob Poeltl is one of the best centers available ahead of the trade deadline. That said, the San Antonio Spurs appear reluctant to move him unless they receive two lightly protected first-round picks.
That would normally seem like an outlandish asking price for a non-all-star center, but Poeltl seemingly has a lot of fans in opposing teams’ front offices, leading to a lot of interest. In fact, the Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics, Portland Trail Blazers, Miami Heat, Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors, and Dallas Mavericks have all been linked to Poeltl.
However, the Raptors and Celtics are the most serious suitors, and the Spurs could leverage their offers against each other to ensure they get their asking price in the deal. Or, another team, i.e., the Lakers, could potentially swoop in and acquire Poeltl as part of a larger deal.
No matter what, based on the number of teams looking to acquire Poeltl, it seems all but guaranteed that he’ll be on a new team after the trade deadline. The only question is which team will land Poeltl.