Why August 6th looms large in the Spurs, Thunder, and Warriors' pursuit of a star

The Golden State Warriors will already look much different next season, with long-time star Klay Thompson leaving to join the Dallas Mavericks. That was partly a result of Golden State not budging in contract discussions with Klay, with the Warriors clearly concerned with staying under the second apron.

They also waived Chris Paul, who signed with the San Antonio Spurs, then signed and traded for Kyle Anderson and Buddy Hield and signed De'anthony Melton. Anderson, Hield, and Melton are good and cheap additions, but the Warriors are also pursuing a big fish in Lauri Markkanen, as are the Spurs, with both teams hoping to persuade the Utah Jazz to trade him.

That is proving to be harder than expected, with the Jazz asking for a big haul from the Warriors, with them asking for their young best players, including Brandin Podziemski, Moses Moody, three firsts and three pick swaps.

Why August 6th is an important date for the Spurs, Thunder, and Warriors' pursuit of a star.

Golden State is unlikely to agree to deal those players in addition to multiple firsts and multiple pick swaps and the Spurs likely wouldn't agree to a deal involving their second-best player, Devin Vassell. Meanwhile, the Oklahoma City Thunder, who have the most draft picks in the NBA, have yet to go all-in for him.

With neither the Warriors, Thunder, nor Spurs agreeing to Utah's asking price, August 6th could make or break trade talks with the Jazz. Utah has to wait until August 6th to extend Markkanen for up to five years.

That could include them renegotiating and extending him with them using most of their remaining $32.5 million in cap space to give him a raise from the $18 million he is currently set to make. That would make his actual five-year extension around $3 million cheaper annually, which would be helpful for the Spurs, Thunder, and Warriors as they try to compete while avoiding the second apron.

Tacking on five years would give teams more incentive to trade for him when he would be eligible to be traded on February 6th but it would make it harder for a team such as Golden State to match his salary.

Ultimately, a Markkanen deal may not happen before August 6th. If the Jazz extend him, a deal wouldn't be possible until the day of the trade deadline, with the Spurs, Thunder, and Warriors all likely to continue to pursue him.