LaMarcus Aldridge could be wearing a different jersey by season's end. Rumor has it the San Antonio Spurs‘ $80 million big man could be traded if the team does not outperform expectations.
In an appearance on CSN New England, ESPN columnist Jackie MacMullan said Aldridge could be shipped elsewhere at some point during the season:
“For instance, sources were telling me the other day that LaMarcus Aldridge may not even finish the year with the Spurs. That experiment hasn't quite worked out the way they hoped.”
MacMullan doesn't seem to be the only one who thinks so, as her colleague Senior Writer Zach Lowe said last week that if Aldridge doesn't outperform the Spurs' expectations, they could potentially dangle him in trade talks.
“The Spurs will see if this team outperforms expectations,” wrote Lowe. “If it doesn't, they should take calls on Aldridge. He's really good, and there are a lot of impatient owners chasing immediate gratification.”
Lowe also noted, “Aldridge is 31, six years older than Kawhi Leonard, and his trade value will never be higher; he can opt out of his contract after the 2017-18 season.”
Both of these writers make very strong, valid points as Aldridge will shortly look to set himself up for the rest of his career, and he and his agent will likely chase better than a $20 million-per-year deal, but performances like he offered last season won't necessarily cut the check — not for the Spurs it won't. San Antonio has ran a tight ship for the past two decades as head coach Gregg Popovich and general manager R.C. Buford are synced mentally to the point where they might as well be twins.
Aldridge averaged 18 points and 8.5 rebounds in his first year in San Antonio, a considerable dip in performance from his 23.4 points and 10.2 rebounds that he averaged from his last year in Portland.
A noteworthy nugget is that the Spurs played him five minutes less per game than what he played in the 2014-15 season, which could explain the decline in numbers, as well as shot attempts throughout the year. The offense was mainly run through Kawhi Leonard, which showed by him having the best season of his career — so the Spurs' discontent with Aldridge seems to be more of a matter of fitting into their system than the actual statistical output.
Nevertheless, the Spurs had the best season in the team's history, notching 67 wins, but ultimately fell short of their goal after losing to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference semifinals 4-2.
If a team bites on Aldridge by the deadline, the Spurs won't hesitate to pull the trigger in Bellichick-like fashion and trade-in their ride before the miles on the 31-year-old Dallas native start to affect his value.
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