The San Antonio Spurs almost traded for point guard Darius Garland over De’Aaron Fox when they were looking to cash in some assets for an established guard. San Antonio ultimately made a deal to acquire Fox from the Sacramento Kings when he informed his previous team about his desire for a new location. Things worked out perfectly for the Spurs to make the NBA Finals in their first full season with this core.
However, agent Rich Paul shared the following details about how close San Antonio got to trading for Garland:
“I remember the trade getting ready to take place, and De’Aaron and I were talking about it. We were talking about different options, where he could go, etc. Obviously, I had the Spurs kind of teed up as a possibility. The thing about the trade for De’Aaron, at first, it wasn’t De’Aaron.
It was another guard that I represent that I was envisioning going there because De’Aaron wasn’t wanting to be traded yet. But this guard was actually Darius Garland. He was flustered. He was frustrated. He wanted to get out.”
Paul represents both players and initially viewed the Spurs as an ideal option for Garland. San Antonio lacked a second All-Star on the roster behind Victor Wembanyama. Paul originally pitched Garland, but the Spurs ultimately found their ideal player in Fox.
Would Darius Garland Have Helped Spurs?
The most interesting aspect of this story is wondering what would have happened with the Spurs if they traded for Garland instead of Fox. To his credit, Garland is also a former All-Star and has played a role in contributing to winning basketball.
One issue could have seen Garland being a smaller guard since he’s a few inches shorter and lighter than Fox. The Cleveland Cavaliers finally traded Garland this season for James Harden due to believing they couldn’t truly contend for an NBA Championship with Garland as the starting point guard.
Garland likely would have done a good job playing on such a talented roster. However, Fox is clearly a better fit and has understood his role perfectly. Some nights require Fox to play All-Star caliber basketball, and other nights see him as a secondary figure deferring to others.
Spurs Realized They’d Be Title Contenders Quickly
The vision of San Antonio last season saw them active enough on the market for Paul to pitch two of his clients. Wembanyama’s generational talent rightfully convinced the Spurs they could contend fast and to look for talent upgrades via a trade.
Many young rosters will wait a few seasons before going after an All-Star to finish fine tuning the roster. San Antonio deserves credit for not wasting any time, while also keeping young building blocks like Stephon Castle and Devin Vassell.
The young roster is already in their first NBA Finals appearance, with expectations to contend every season moving forward. All of this comes back to Wemby and the team realizing that he was already good enough to lead them to contention. The Fox trade was a perfect move at the right time to set up the current success we’re witnessing.
Like HEAVY’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post Spurs Almost Traded For Another All-Star Over De’Aaron Fox appeared first on HEAVY.