O’Connor on San Antonio Spurs’ DeRozan: ‘I feel he could end up being on the move.’

The San Antonio Spurs need to make some moves to get back to being contenders, and The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor thinks that may involve moving DeMar DeRozan.

With rumors that next season may start sooner than expected, the rumor mill has been especially active lately. From speculation that DeMar DeRozan may be unhappy in San Antonio to rumblings of LaMarcus Aldridge finding his way back to Portland, the San Antonio Spurs have been in the thick of rumors themselves.

With the NBA Draft less than one month away, The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor has been writing weekly mock drafts and speculating on free agency, trade talks, and all things related to the offseason. In his recent column, O’Connor proposed the Spurs sending DeMar DeRozan and the 11th pick to the Hawks for the sixth pick to draft Isaac Okoro.

On the latest episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast, O’Connor expanded more about his thoughts on DeRozan’s NBA future.

“I wouldn’t be shocked if DeRozan gets more interest in the trade market than people think,” said O’Connor. “The year he just had — he was one of the most efficient isolation scorers that has been recorded in league history. It was an unbelievable season.”

DeMar is coming off his best shooting season by far, shooting a scorching 53.1 percent from the field and ending with an efficiency field goal percentage of 53.5 percent. However, speculation about his old school, three-less style of play has led to some thinking the market may be dry for him.

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Still, Bill Simmons and Kevin O’Connor both agreed that there’s still plenty of value in the league for a guy like DeRozan.

“If there are 90 seconds left in the game and I’m down one, I can give him the ball, and he’s going to get a good 17-footer or get to the line. I still think guys like that are valuable, especially for a team that’s trying to make the playoffs,” said Simmons.

The scenario certainly applies to the Atlanta Hawks, who are a few pieces away from being a playoff team and would improve by leaps and bounds if they could add a scorer like DeMar. While DeRozan had an incredible season with the Spurs, there should be interest for both sides to explore some options as an offseason likely to be full of moves draws near.

“I feel like DeRozan is a guy that could end up being on the move,” said O’Connor. “I’ve heard he’s been involved in some trade conversations. Maybe San Antonio could be easing toward a rebuild here.”

I’m in the camp of many Spurs fans that believes the team needs to move either Aldridge or DeRozan (or both) this winter, as the pairing just hasn’t been able to produce together efficiently.

While I’d prefer Aldridge to be the one shipped, it wouldn’t surprise me if San Antonio pulled the trigger on obtaining assets for DeMar in the near future.