Reckless Spurs trade sacrifices sanity to solve De'Aaron Fox problem

With free agency mostly done and preseason still almost two months away, now's the time for bad trade proposals, and we have another one. This one comes from the folks at SI.com, which has a pretty unsightly trade pitch involving the San Antonio Spurs and the hated Los Angeles Lakers.

Never mind that the Spurs and Lakers were heated rivals for years, but Los Angeles seemingly doesn't have much that would interest San Antonio. Unless the Lakers want to graciously trade Luka Doncic for Keldon Johnson, Devin Vassell, and Kelly Olynyk, then it may be hard to find a trade that benefits the Spurs. Even so, let's take a closer look at the proposed trade.

A ridiculous Spurs-Lakers trade proposal would hurt the Spurs

The trade would send the Spurs Austin Reaves, Gabe Vincent, Jarred Vanderbilt, Maxi Kleber, and a second-round pick. Meanwhile, the Lakers would get Devin Vassell, Stephon Castle, Jeremy Sochan, and a 1st-round pick.

It goes without saying that that is an awful, lopsided trade in the Lakers' favor. No way the Spurs give up two starters and a sixth man plus a first for Reaves, an expiring salary, and two decent second-unit players.

Ironically, the Spurs could have signed Reaves in the summer of 2023 but instead opted to make other deals. That might have been a bad decision considering how much he has improved since then, but San Antonio shouldn't try to rectify that wrong by trading for him now.

After all, he could make $30 million a year on his next contract, which would mean he'd be seeking a 4-year, $120 million deal. Adding that cap number to the Spurs' books, right after signing De'Aaron Fox to a max extension, is questionable. Though GM Brian Wright would largely offset that salary by trading Vassell.

The Spurs should steer clear of trading with the Lakers

Even so, I would rather have Vassell on this version of the Spurs, which is already guard-heavy. The best version of Vassell is a high-volume sharpshooter who can capably defend two positions.

Reaves is the better player, but his defensive issues and his playing at a position that the Spurs don't need make him a head-scratching trade target. Then there's the thought of trading Castle to the Lakers while also having to give up two other good players and a first.

Castle's trade value is probably higher than Reaves's at the moment considering that he is the reigning Rookie of the Year with plenty of untapped potential. While the Spurs may have a logjam at point guard with Castle, Fox, and Dylan Harper, this deal would be underselling on one of those three players.

Fox would also be the most likely player to be moved if the Spurs were to break up that trio, not Castle, given his ceiling.

All told, this trade doesn't make sense for the Spurs and would only benefit the Lakers. The Spurs may make a big trade at some point between now and the trade deadline, but probably not with the Lakers, and probably not involving Castle.