Pau Gasol now looms as the San Antonio Spurs target following Kevin Durant's decision to join the Golden State Warriors. (Photo : Getty Images/Andy Lyons)
The San Antonio Spurs are one among multiple teams interested in signing up Pau Gasol though the 35-year-old forward is seen more as a contingency plans rather than a priority. With Kevin Durant opting to join the Golden State Warriors, the only thing remains right now is Tim Duncan's plans.
The Spurs didn’t really have good chances on Durant as proven from that less than two-hour meeting. Though San Antonio has been known to keep it short and sweet, it pales in comparison with the talks the one-time MVP had with the Los Angeles Clippers and the Oklahoma City Thunder as 24/7 Sport reported.
So with the Spurs likely bombing out of the Durant sweepstakes, attention now shifts on Duncan and his plans. Durant announced via the Players Tribune that he was joining the Golden State Warriors.
As most know, 40-year-old Tim Duncan elected to pick up his $5.6 million option of his contract last June 29 according to Yahoo Sports. While it was expected, the fact remains that the Spurs need to know what Duncan’s future plans are. Will he play or will he finally hang it up?
One thing that the Spurs may want to address is their aging lineup. Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker are aging and adding Gasol will push the team to the oldest team niche once more.
With consideration to the young players in the NBA today plus the strain that an 82-game regular season brings, injuries are more than likely to set in. The three Spurs veterans dealt with that, same with Gasol with the Chicago Bulls.
More to that, the Spurs will need to make the transition and move forward. They have a lot of young players in the mix and playing time will be key to see if they deserve to be a Spur or not.
It all depends on coach Gregg Popovich and company. Adding Gasol is seen as a short term deal. But towing in a lot of senior players to next season may not prove effective if they want another NBA title in hand.
One person likely to know Tim Duncan’s plans is coach Gregg Popovich. Check out the video below on what he had to say when asked about Duncan’s possible retirement.
