NBA Trade Idea: Rockets' Jalen Green to Spurs?
The San Antonio Spurs continue to build their team around Victor Wembanyama, and another playmaking guard would certainly take some attention away from the 7-4 giant.
Bleacher Report attempts to push the ball forward in that regard by proposing a trade that would send Houston Rockets guard Jalen Green to the Spurs for Blake Wesley and a 2024 first-round pick from the Toronto Raptors.
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"Green's career isn't going as expected in Houston, as his raw numbers and efficiency have dropped in his third year on a new-look Rockets team that has a lot of mouths to feed," Bleacher Report writes. "Getting a fresh start in an organization like San Antonio and linking up with Victor Wembanyama may be just what he needs. The Spurs should be willing to take a chance on the 22-year-old Green, the No. 2 overall pick of the 2021 draft. San Antonio's offense ranks just 27th overall this season (109.0 rating) and could use a scoring talent like Green who's still just scratching the surface of what he can become."
The Spurs could have a pair of top-10 picks this season as a result of the Jakob Poeltl trade from a year ago, and there's even an argument that Green is better than most of the top prospects in this summer's draft.
Green, 22, is averaging 17.9 points per game this season so far for the Rockets, which is a step back from the 22.1 he averaged a year ago. That being said, he didn't have Fred VanVleet alongside him in the backcourt, and the veteran guard has taken some opportunities for him to be the primary offensive guard.
Ultimately, Green oozes talent and if the Rockets feel he doesn't fit in their plans, the Spurs should give them a call. While Houston may feel apprehensive about trading their once-top pick to a division rival, San Antonio offering a top-10 pick could be the biggest package of any team looking to acquire him this offseason.
