Spurs could trade away prominent young player?

Feb 8, 2020; Sacramento, California, USA; San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich on the sideline against the Sacramento Kings during the first quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

As the owners of an active 18-game losing streak, the San Antonio Spurs may be doing some real soul-searching.

In an appearance this week on “The Hoop Collective,” Marc J. Spears of ESPN suggested that Spurs youngster Keldon Johnson may be a trade candidate ahead of the February deadline.

“You know who I got my eye on with the Spurs? Keldon Johnson I keep hearing this buzz about,” said Spears, per USA Today. “‘Not sure if he fits in well with this group going forward and should he be coming off the bench.’ If there is a player that I think does get moved from the Spurs, my guess it’ll probably be Keldon Johnson.”

The 24-year-old Johnson is an important puzzle piece for the Spurs. He averages 17.2 points per game, is very active on the glass, handles some secondary playmaking duties, and defends well at 6-foot-5 with a 6-foot-9 wingspan. But Johnson does have a tendency to search out his own shot to the detriment of the overall offense. With better pure scorers on the team like Devin Vassell and Victor Wembanyama (plus guys like Jeremy Sochan and Cedi Osman capable of the role-player duties), Johnson might be a little redunant for this current version of the Spurs.

It may be especially important for San Antonio to add a needle-moving point guard who can get the ball to Wembanyama (since this season’s PG experiment isn’t really working at all). Johnson, who is in the first year of a relatively affordable (and frontloaded) four-year, $74 million deal, could be an attractive trade chip for them to dangle.