As the San Antonio Spurs look to improve their roster around generational talent Victor Wembanyama, everything is on the table. That doesn't mean every player on the team or asset will be part of a trade, but it does mean there is no shortage of options. At the top of that list may be Keldon Johnson.
With the NBA Draft approaching, Johnson's name has been one that has come up in trade discussion. While the Spurs will listen to offers on the table, San Antonio isn't necessarily rushing to trade away Johnson, via Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints.
“Coming out of the NBA Draft Combine, the talk around the league is that the Spurs will be open for business with both of their draft picks,” Siegel reported. “In addition to the team being open to discussing trade ideas with both the fourth and eighth overall picks, the Spurs will be willing to hear offers involving Keldon Johnson.”
“However, the Spurs still view Johnson as a key building block next to Wembanyama, and have given teams no indication that he is currently on the trade block,” Siegel continued.
There are several reasons the Spurs, and teams around the NBA, view Johnson as a potential trade candidate.
Keldon Johnson's contract
Though the former Kentucky Wildcat signed his second contract with the Spurs two years ago, the four year extension was front-loaded. After making $20 million dollars this past season, Johnson is set to make 19 million this coming year. He's then slated to make $17.5 million in each of the next two seasons.
In other words, his contract his friendly. Especially for a player who's coming off averaging 15.7 points per game after scoring 22 PPG and 17 PPG the previous two years. Which leads to another reason why San Antonio may get nibbles regarding Johnson.
Johnson's lasting impact
In altering his game for Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama, Johnson still ranked third on the team in scoring while giving the second unit a punch. During the season, Hall of Fame head coach Gregg Popovich moved the five-year pro to a reserve role so that offensive production wouldn't suffer so severely once Wemby, second-leading scorer Devin Vassell, fourth-leading scorer Jeremy Sochan and Johnson left the floor.
In coming off the bench in 42 of the 69 games he played in 2023-2024, Johnson averaged 5.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists in 29.5 minutes for the season. He shot 34.6% from three-point land and 45.4% from the field. All of his numbers are among or around the middle of the pack in regard to team leaders.
Johnson still oozes potential
At 24 years old, Johnson is still young. At a time when rookies are routinely entering the NBA at 19, he's no longer very young comparatively – as his time as the longest tenured current Spur would suggest.
That said, barring anything unexpected, Johnson has the majority of his career in front of him, including a couple of seasons that could be among his most productive. Not bad considering he's already averaged 22 points per contest.
Though Wembanyama's place as their cornerstone may be the only certainty for the Spurs, it's easy to see why they'd like to hold on to Vassell, who's continued to increase high scoring averages and is 23-years-old, and 21-year-old Sochan, who's made back to back Rising Stars games.
For this reason and more, it stands to reason that should a team in trade talks with the Spurs want a current player in addition to a draft pick, Johnson could be a top option.
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