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The San Antonio Spurs don’t necessarily need to swing back this offseason to return to the NBA Finals in the foreseeable future (they suffered a 4-1 defeat at the hands of the New York Knicks in the final round of this year's postseason).
The five-time NBA champions have the talented, evolving young players required for sustained success in the big leagues, making notable yet far-from-earth-shattering offseason acquisitions more than acceptable.
However, CBS Sports’ Sam Quinn thinks it isn’t off-base to suggest the Spurs could land a Los Angeles Lakers star and four-time NBA champion who’s likely to receive an enticing free agent offer from the Golden State Warriors.
“But he and longtime Spurs coach Gregg Popovich have long shared a mutual admiration,” Quinn wrote Sunday. “If he's as serious about wanting to win as he says, there's no better suitor out there. The Spurs can make the money work.”
“The mid-level probably tops every suitor but the Lakers, and if the Spurs need to move Johnson to create cap space, they could get James into the low-20-million-dollar range. The basketball fit works because it always works with LeBron. He can do anything. He's power forward-sized, a need we've covered.”
“He's no sharpshooter, but come on, nobody is ignoring LeBron James off the ball. He might be ball-handling overkill, but if they move (De’Aaron) Fox, James could step in as the veteran stabilizing creator. Maybe officially passing the ‘face of the league’ baton to Wembanyama would appeal to him. It's not likely, but it's worth an internal discussion on San Antonio's part.”
On June 1, the San Francisco Standard’s Tim Kawakami reported that there’s a legitimate chance the Dubs could offer James the $15.1 million non-taxpayer mid-level exception this summer to improve their odds of pairing him with Stephen Curry for one final championship run.
In other words, the Spurs will have their work cut out for them if they show serious interest in James in the next few weeks, but Quinn is still a firm believer that San Antonio could present James with the best offer on the free agent market.
The 41-year-old has been on the big stage 10 times in his two-decade-long career and prevailed four times as the Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Miami Heat’s top playmaking option. I
f that doesn’t encourage San Antonio to pursue James, who contributed 20.9 points, 7.2 assists, and 6.1 rebounds with the Lakers this year in a tertiary role, it’s challenging to envision an alternative that will.
Again, the Spurs don’t need to add a game-changing asset like James to make another championship, but the intrigue should be there at the very least.
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