The NBA trade deadline is hours away, and things are really starting to pick up around the league. According to Shams Charania, the Toronto Raptors are trading Goran Dragic to the San Antonio Spurs for our old friend, Thaddeus Young.
Sources: Full Spurs-Raptors deal:
Raptors: Thad Young, Drew Eubanks, 2022 Pistons second-rounder
Spurs: Goran Dragic, Toronto 2022 first-rounder (protected 1-14, protected 1-13 in 2023, turning into future seconds)
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 10, 2022
Dragic has played only five games for the Raptors this season, and Young has been on the outside looking in for the Spurs most of the year. Young will provide the Raptors with a solid veteran presence at down low as they gear up for a playoff run (unless they want to buy him out and let him sign with the Bulls!). As for Dragic …
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting that the Spurs plan to buy out with the veteran guard. He also came ready with a list of interested teams, naming the Chicago Bulls as a possible suitor for Dragic’s backcourt services.
ESPN Sources: The Spurs — who are trading for Toronto's Goran Dragic — are expected to negotiate a contract buyout with Dragic. Among the interested expected to be interested once he becomes a free agent: Dallas, Milwaukee, Chicago, Clippers.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 10, 2022
Considering there have been whispers about the team’s interest in adding a player like Dennis Schroder to bolster the team’s guard depth in the wake of all those injuries, a Dragic pursuit could make sense. With that said, it still feels a bit unlikely that the Bulls add to this position as opposed to the frontcourt. Not to mention, Chris Haynes is reporting that the Dallas Mavericks are the clear favorites to land the 35-year-old, which is a connection we have heard about since the offseason.
Upon completion of an expected buyout between Goran Dragic and the San Antonio Spurs, the Dallas Mavericks will be the favorites to add the veteran point guard, league sources tell @YahooSports.
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) February 10, 2022
We’ll update this post with any new thoughts and information.
Elias Schuster contributed to this post.Â
UPDATE
I (Eli) just have some thoughts on the Eastern Conference playoff picture that I have to get off my chest.
I know the Raptors may not be considered a substantial threat right now, but this is an experienced team with one of the best head coaches in the NBA. They have slowly risen up the standings and currently sit 6th just 1.5 games behind the Philadelphia 76ers. Bulls fans got a glimpse of just how pesky this Raptors team can be when they lost 127-120 to them earlier this month. They have tremendous length and play with an endless supply of hustle that can make even the most offensive talented offensive team work for every shot. And Thaddeus Young will only add to that length and hustle.
Young struggled to show the same kind of versatility we saw in Chicago last season, but he also only appeared in just 26 games for a rebuilding team. I believe he can help a surging Raptors team plenty, and I think the pocket playmaking he possesses around players like Fred VanVleet and Gary Trent Jr. could add another dynamic layer to that offense. Young may not be the kind of true big man they have been looking for, but he fits well … which I hate.
Lump the Young deal in with the Bucks’ acquisition of Serge Ibaka, and those are two of the Bulls’ competitors adding frontcourt depth. If it wasn’t clear already that this front office needs to find some re-enforcements down low, it sure is now. Let’s see what they do.
The Bucks Are Acquiring Serge Ibaka in a Four-Team Tradehttps://t.co/rosTvuKCn0 pic.twitter.com/jEKEdDCn2e
— Bleacher Nation Bulls (@BN_Bulls) February 10, 2022