Phoenix Suns Receive: F/C Thaddeus Young
San Antonio Spurs Receive: F Jalen Smith, C Dario Saric
On August 10, Phoenix Suns beat writer Evan Sidery suggested that Phoenix could be interested in adding Thaddeus Young to their roster after he was dealt to the Spurs. Now, The Athletic’s Shams Charania is reporting that the Suns are interested in pursuing Young.
Given the Spurs want to move a player, likely one they acquired in the sign-and-trade deal involving DeRozan, it seems likely that the Suns could get a deal done for Thaddeus Young, but who knows what the Spurs would want in exchange for him.
The whole point of trading Young would be to free up a roster spot, yet they would be adding an extra player by making this deal.
Overall though, the only way the Suns can acquire Thaddeus Young without giving up guys like Jae Crowder, Mikal Bridges, and Cameron Johnson is by trading away last year’s first-round pick Jalen Smith and Dario Saric, who is currently recovering from offseason ACL surgery.
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The 21-year-old power forward/center has a chance to be a valuable rotational player, and on a team like the Spurs with other young, athletic talents, he could really carve out a role for himself in time.
For Phoenix, getting Thaddeus Young gives them even more depth in their frontcourt, and he is coming off one of the best all-around seasons of his career at 33-years-old. He averaged 12.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.1 steals, and shot 55.9% from the floor, making Young one of the more valuable and underrated players in the league today.
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Not only could he be a great paint player for the Suns to play through since he is always consistent on offense, but they would finally have frontcourt depth, something that plagued them in the NBA Finals last season. Getting Thaddeus Young is the best deal the Suns can make if they were to trade Jalen Smith.
