[UPDATE: Aldridge’s 2020/21 salary will actually become fully guaranteed on January 1, 2020, per John Hollinger of The Athletic.]
The Spurs have fully guaranteed LaMarcus Aldridge‘s $24MM salary for the 2020/21 season, agent Jeff Schwartz tells Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link).
Aldridge’s salary for next season had previously only been partially guaranteed for $7MM, per Basketball Insiders’ contract data. That essentially meant he was on an expiring contract in 2019/20, but that will no longer be the case, as San Antonio has now given him some additional security. Aldridge remains on track to reach unrestricted free agency in 2021, when his current contract is up.
Aldridge, 34, is entering his 14th NBA season, but hasn’t shown real signs of slowing down yet. In 2018/19, he averaged 21.3 PPG and 9.2 RPG with a .519 FG% in 81 games for San Antonio. All those numbers were above his career rates, as he earned his seventh All-Star nod.
Having extended Dejounte Murray earlier this week and now locked in another $17MM in guaranteed money for Aldridge, the Spurs are increasingly unlikely to have much cap flexibility during the 2020 offseason, though that will hinge in part on what happens with DeMar DeRozan. The team has discussed an extension with DeRozan, but the two sides are reportedly not close.
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