Unpopular Spurs trade that would instantly make San Antonio a title contender

The San Antonio Spurs, overloaded with youth yet still establishing themselves as NBA elites, are struggling to find the motivation to make a major move during trade season. For instance, they're sitting out the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes despite arguably having all the necessary ingredients to win it.

And, honestly, that makes sense—even if an Antetokounmpo-Victor Wembanyama tandem could be an all-timer. It's still early enough into the Alamo City's alien era that emptying the asset collection could be seen as unnecessarily reckless, especially when San Antonio looks like a full-fledged contender as is.

That doesn't mean San Antonio should snooze through the Feb. 5 trade deadline, though. Because there are ways to beef-up this roster without blowing the budget. Like, say, ringing up the Portland Trail Blazers for a consolidation-type trade that sends out a few decent-ish assets for an impact addition at the forward spot.

The Spurs might be one wing upgrade away from a championship push.

Between Wembanyama's shining star in the starting group, and Luke Kornet's paint protection off the pine, San Antonio's interior tandem is terrific. And you'd be hard-pressed to find a guard group with a better blend of ability and upside than the one featuring all three of De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, and Dylan Harper.

Shift over to the forward spots, though, and that's where San Antonio goes from looking superhuman to merely mortal. Johnson, Harrison Barnes, and Julian Champagnie are all fine, but there isn't a needle-mover in the mix. Maybe that's an argument to make an aggressive move for someone like Trey Murphy III, but again, that may carry a cost San Antonio is unwilling to stomach.

This deal looks far more digestible. Johnson is a rotational reserve who often mutes his impact by a lack of three-point volume. With the aforementioned depth at center, Olynyk is more of a luxury than a necessity. Bryant, this year's 14th pick, could have a bright future in front of him, but he's not ready to contribute. And that future first would probably land near the back end of the opening round based on this group's trajectory.

What would San Antonio bring back for all that? A plug-and-play combo forward with gobs of experience (including 35 playoff games), two-way versatility, and a familiarity with filling everything from a starring role to a supporting one. While he's not exactly a lockdown defender, he can pester big wings and create chaos off the ball.

Squint, and you could picture Grant providing a lot of the same stuff Murphy would deliver. Grant doesn't have the same athleticism or upside, obviously, but again, he also wouldn't carry nearly the same trade cost.

Some Spurs fans still won't love this deal—or any trade for that matter. They'll look at what this roster has accomplished and how much growth potential it possesses and wonder whether the championship puzzle may already be complete.

Still, the front office may not want to leave as much up to chance. If San Antonio sees a chance to strengthen its roster ahead of what should be a long playoff run without greatly weakening its asset collection, that feels like a trade worth making. Like this one is.