Trade pitch has Spurs getting solid PG while helping an enemy

It is clear that the San Antonio Spurs will have one big priority this coming offseason: addressing their need at point guard. Ever since the departure of Dejounte Murray in 2022, the team has lacked a true floor general and it has shown in their on-court performance.

Of course, without trading Murray the organization would have never ended up with the generational talent of Victor Wembanyama as their new franchise cornerstone. But now as the Spurs look to build for the future and put fitting pieces around Wemby, a true point guard with strong playmaking and floor-reading abilities is absolutely a must.

San Antonio will of course consider filling this hole through one of their three first-round picks in this year's draft, but there is also the chance they could hold out and see which players around the league are available via trade in the summer. Recently, Bleacher Report crafted up a potential trade that might help the Spurs get what they are looking for.

The proposed deal involves the Spurs sending Keldon Johnson, Devonte' Graham and two future first-rounders to the Houston Rockets in exchange for Fred VanVleet. San Antonio would get a potential long-term solution at point guard in exchange for two rotation players and just two of the many first-round picks they own for the remainder of the decade.

Proposed trade would net the Spurs Fred VanVleet

The first question that will arise in many minds when examining this trade is why the Rockets would consider moving on from Vanvleet, who they signed to a three-year deal less than a year ago. Well, it is no secret that Fred's contract is not exactly what most would consider cheap, with Houston agreeing to pay him $130 million over the course of three seasons.

We are all aware of how inflated NBA contracts are in this day and age. But if the Rockets are leaning toward trying to free up money to pay a bigger, star-level player, that is something the Spurs could certainly help out with. From San Antonio's perspective, two first-round picks is chump change, and Johnson and Graham both put up underwhelming performances this season.

But then the next question becomes, is San Antonio comfortable giving Fred the keys to their offense for the next (at least) two seasons? Sure, he would be an upgrade over Tre Jones, but you would have to think there are better options out there to maximize the talent of Wemby.

Not to mention, VanVleet would not be guaranteed to have instant chemistry with Gregg Popovich. At the Raptors' championship parade back in 2019, Fred had a viral moment where he allegedly shouted an obscenity about Popovich. Whether he actually said it or not, this could hypothetically play into the organization's decision to trade for VanVleet.

All in all, this could be a fine deal if San Antonio is okay with bringing in a shorter-term solution and taking baby steps toward contention. But if they are looking to win now like Victor Wembanyama has said is his goal, they would be best suited looking elsewhere.