San Antonio Spurs rumors: They should take a chance on Jabari Parker for the right price

Jabari Parker may be on the outs in Chicago, which provides the Spurs with an opportunity to buy low on a talented player. We continue to explore San Antonio Spurs rumors with this potential scenario.

Trade season brings about a ton of San Antonio Spurs rumors, and that includes taking a look at a player that has fallen out of favor with his current team.

There has been a lot of drama surrounding the Chicago Bulls after the firing of Fred Hoiberg, and some of the headlines involve new free agent signing Jabari Parker.

According to Malika Andrews of ESPN, Parker is likely to be dropped from the Bulls’ rotation and that seemed to be confirmed on Thursday night when he only played four minutes in a tight game against the Magic.

If Chicago is going to essentially bench Jabari, they should probably try to move him by the trade deadline.

Parker is eligible to be traded as of December 15th, and there will be plenty of suitors calling the Bulls’ front office to check on their asking price for a former number two overall pick.

Should the Spurs be one of those teams, and what would a potential trade look like?

Next: Jabari Parker's contract

Jabari Parker’s contract

Jabari Parker has struggled with knee injuries during the early part of his career, and the Bucks were willing to let him walk as an unrestricted free agent this offseason after four years in Milwaukee.

He flashed some major talent with the Bucks, but the former Duke Blue Devil was ultimately too inconsistent to factor into their future plans, and he’s not a great fit next to the Greek Freak.

The Bulls took a chance on the Chicago native by giving him a one-year contract worth $20 million with a team option for the second year on that deal.

Chicago seems to have buyer’s remorse just a couple of months into the season, and they may not have a ton of leverage in upcoming trade negotiations if they decide to move on from him.

However, his short-term contract should entice teams to take a chance on his talent without much long-term risk.

Next: San Antonio Spurs' trade assets

San Antonio Spurs’ trade assets

Unlike some of the other deals we’ve discussed earlier this season, the Spurs might not have to give up much to acquire Parker from Chicago.

San Antonio does have to get close to matching Jabari’s salary in a trade because of their current salary cap situation, but they could package Pau Gasol in a potential deal to even out the money.

At this point, I don’t think the Spurs would even have to give up one of their first round picks to get Parker to San Antonio.

Pau Gasol’s injury complicates matters, and they may have to wait until he’s healthy to make a deal. But the Spurs could hypothetically package him along with Dante Cunningham to give Chicago a couple of useful veterans, and then throw in a second round pick to sweeten the deal a bit.

If Pau is unable to get healthy in time for the trade deadline, the Spurs could substitute Patty Mills in the deal, trade Quincy Pondexter instead of Dante Cunningham, and take that draft compensation off the table.

I think the Spurs could create a fair deal for both sides considering the circumstances, and San Antonio could benefit from acquiring a young player with a ton of upside.

Next: Jabari Parker's potential fit in San Antonio

Jabari Parker’s potential fit in San Antonio

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The Spurs have a limited amount of resources to acquire high-level talent in the next few years because they don’t have a ton of cap space, and they probably won’t be getting any high lottery picks while Gregg Popovich is still coaching.

Pop would love to see if he could finally unlock Parker’s potential, and Jabari could fit in well with DeMar DeRozan, Rudy Gay, LaMarcus Aldridge, and one of the Spurs’ point guard options.

Jabari likes to do most of his damage in the midrange, and that’s what San Antonio has built around in this current iteration of the team.

However, he has shown flashes of three-point prowess shooting over 36.5% from deep on a decent amount of attempts during his final two seasons in Milwaukee.

Parker could help the Spurs’ chances of making the playoffs this season, and he has the potential to become a building block of the next great team in San Antonio.

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There isn’t a significant amount of risk in this deal I’ve laid out because the Spurs shouldn’t have to give up many important assets, and they could decline that team option if things don’t work out this season.

I know San Antonio doesn’t usually like doing in-season trades, but I think this deal makes a lot of sense for the Spurs.