Fictitious trade proposal ships Sochan to New York for a Hail Mary

Before diving into this trade proposal submitted to the masses by Sam Vecenie, I want to provide a disclaimer for the seasoned NBA writer. He did say that he didn't hear any rumors or whispers of this deal. He just believes it would be "fun," and that's fine. Sports are here for our enjoyment, and few things get basketball fans going like trade season. With that said, I'm out on Guerschon Yabusele.

I'm at least out via this route. The Spurs would send Jeremy Sochan to New York for Yabusele, Pacome Dadiet, and a 2027 second-round draft pick. If you're unfamiliar with that last name, you should be. He hasn't done anything of note in this league and has barely played after being selected with the 25th pick in the summer of 2024.

I could certainly see why the Knicks would want to do this deal, but not San Antonio. It's a hard no on this one.

Spurs would be trading a rotation player for a prayer

There are several layers to this, so bear with me for a minute. I was a big supporter of bringing Yabu in to partner with his Team France teammate, Victor Wembanyama. When that didn't happen, and he signed in the Big Apple, I was a little disappointed. However, halfway through the season, Guerschon is barely getting playing time for Mike Brown, who we know to be a good coach.

Now, that doesn't mean that he fits in Brown's vision of the team, so it's not a complete negative, but Knicks fans have griped all season about his fitness. He's been accused of being out of shape, and that's a terrible look for a player getting a second shot at the NBA after being forced out for not being good enough.

Even still, that wouldn't completely disqualify him from consideration to join the roster because there was this guy named Boris Diaw who comes to mind for comparison. Diaw was out of shape before joining the Spurs and didn't play as much his first season because of it. However, he got himself in shape and ended up an important piece to a title run. Now he'll be beloved in Alamo City forever.

But. It would still be a risk, and you're trading away a strong defender you've given actual minutes to and helped you win games for one you're hoping will get in shape and be a contributor. It's not ideal.

In Vecenie's article, he claimed Dadiet is the reason the Spurs should do the deal, though. That's even worse. Sam says the 6'8" French wing was always seen as a long-term project. That's still the case now. He hasn't produced in the G League or anywhere else, but "maybe the Spurs’ player development system can unlock something with him," the veteran NBA observer wrote.

Again. No thanks. The Spurs don't need to trade for another project player who has shown absolutely zero signs of viability in the NBA. Sounds like Malaki Branham in a wing's body. Send us Yabu for a second rounder straight up. Otherwise, we're good on that.