Spurs: Mapping out 5 LaMarcus Aldridge trades in NBA 2K

By now, most San Antonio Spurs fans know it’s happening: the team is officially and mutually parting ways with LaMarcus Aldridge. Air Alamo has been all over this, covering the most likely destinations and best fits for Aldridge, with Ethan Farina already highlighting a few noteworthy trade opportunities to make sure the Spurs get at least some return value as opposed to a pure buy out scenario.

This piece builds on those pieces by delving into five trades with some of the key contenders linked to LaMarcus, and yes, we’re using NBA2K to do it. As mentioned in last week’s gaming out trades with NBA 2K piece, 2K allows us to account for salaries, cap space, and trade rules while also introducing an objective trade logic to keep the traders honest.

It’s far from perfect, but it’s one measure to keep us accountable and add a degree of realism to trades and stop us from spinning expectations on trades that would never happen. No amount of wishing will let us trade LaMarcus Aldridge for Luka Doncic or Giannis Antetokounmpo, so it’s better to focus on pieces the Spurs could actually get in return. We’ll start with a much-talked-about reunion.

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