During their historic stretch of success over the last couple decades, the Spurs have typically added core players through the draft, delving into free agency primarily for complementary pieces. However, a year after going out and signing Pau Gasol to a lucrative deal, San Antonio appeared poised to make an even bigger splash in 2017, with multiple June reports suggesting the club had serious interest in Chris Paul.
In order to have a serious shot at Paul in free agency, the Spurs would have had to overhaul their roster to a certain extent. LaMarcus Aldridge and Danny Green would have been trade candidates, and free-agent-to-be Patty Mills likely wouldn’t have been back. Before the Spurs had a chance to see if those drastic changes would be possible though, a Southwest rival swooped in and beat them to the punch, as the Rockets traded for Paul three days before the free agent period began.
With no shot at acquiring CP3, the Spurs scrapped their efforts to create cap space, opting instead to remain over the cap, bring back their primary contributors, and make tweaks to the edges of their roster. In other words, it was a fairly typical offseason for San Antonio.
The Spurs were the only NBA team that didn’t make a trade during the offseason, and they brought back 11 of their 15 players from their end-of-season roster. Considering the team didn’t come close to knocking off the Warriors in the postseason, it’s fair to question why Gregg Popovich and R.C. Buford didn’t do anything more drastic in an attempt to shift the balance of power in the Western Conference.
But let’s not forget that the Spurs got off to a great start in Game 1 of the Western Finals last season before an injury to MVP candidate Kawhi Leonard changed the course of the series. If the Spurs entered that series thinking they had a real chance against Golden State, there’s no reason to think the club won’t hold that belief again this year, having brought back most of its key pieces.
Key offseason losses:
Of course, the Spurs aren’t bringing back all of the rotation players from last year’s squad. Dewayne Dedmon, a reliable presence in the middle, appeared in 76 games for the Spurs last season, starting 37 of them and earning regular minutes. Dedmon’s game wasn’t flashy, but he helped provide rebounding and rim protection up front, particularly when Gasol was out of the game. After earning less than $3MM in 2016/17, Dedmon was in line for a raise in free agency, and San Antonio opted not to pay up to keep him.
Also in line for a pay raise was Jonathon Simmons, a swingman whose performance filling in for Leonard in the Western Conference Finals raised his stock heading into the summer. However, his situation was a little more complicated. Reports in July indicated that Simmons’ camp asked the Spurs to rescind his qualifying offer to make him an unrestricted free agent and allow him to sign elsewhere.
Not every team would have complied with that request, and if Simmons had been a higher-caliber restricted free agent, perhaps the Spurs would have made a stronger effort to make things work, or at least to negotiate a sign-and-trade deal. Instead, the club agreed to make him unrestricted, allowing him to sign with the Magic.
The Spurs lost a third rotation player by parting ways with David Lee, who averaged 7.3 PPG and 5.6 RPG off the bench for the club.
Key offseason additions:
The Spurs avoided the trade market, and many of their free agent agreements were new deals with their own players, including Gasol, Mills, and Manu Ginobili. Still, the club made a couple interesting moves, including signing Rudy Gay using the full mid-level exception.
Even coming off a torn Achilles, Gay likely could’ve found a bigger offer than the two-year, $17MM pact he received from the Spurs. However, in many ways, Gay’s decision to join the Spurs resembled Gasol signing with the club a year earlier — both players had posted big individual numbers in recent years on other teams, but were willing to accept reduced roles – and perhaps reduced salaries – to contend for a title in San Antonio.
In Gasol’s first year as a Spur, he set new career lows in points and minutes played, but he was efficient and played his role well. I expect Gay to experience something similar in 2017/18. His numbers won’t look as impressive as when he was scoring 20+ PPG in Sacramento, but he gives the Spurs a talented, versatile scorer, and Popovich figures to make good use of him.
The Spurs also added big man Joffrey Lauvergne, who is playing for his fourth team in four seasons. The Frenchman never quite found a role that worked for him in Denver, Oklahoma City, or Chicago, but he’s still just 26 years old. And, given how quickly the Spurs snatched him up when he became an unrestricted free agent this summer, I expect they have some ideas for how to maximize his potential.
Outlook for 2017/18:
For each team that was dispatched by the Warriors or Cavaliers in last year’s playoffs, there was a temptation to make significant changes in the offseason. The Spurs briefly explored that idea with their interest in Paul, but even if the Rockets hadn’t landed CP3 in June, it’s hard to imagine San Antonio that would have drastically reshaped its roster to accommodate the star point guard.
Instead, the Spurs doubled down on their current core. Mills, Ginobili, and Gasol received new multiyear deals, and Aldridge had another couple years tacked onto his contract. Compared to the flashy makeovers for contenders like the Cavaliers, Celtics, Rockets, and Thunder, San Antonio’s summer looks uninspired, with most experts predicting the team will take a modest step back in 2017/18.
Still, all the most important pieces of last season’s 61-win team are still here, and the Spurs always manage to outperform expectations when we start to take their continued excellence for granted. Assuming the club stays healthy, there’s no reason why San Antonio shouldn’t have a shot at another deep postseason run next spring.
Salary information from Basketball Insiders used in the creation of this post. Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
