Analyst pitches blockbuster De'Aaron Fox trade the Spurs should fully ignore

The San Antonio Spurs arguably have the brightest future in the NBA, but they could have won the championship last season. Instead, they faltered in all of their losses in the Finals to the Knicks, and much of that is attributed to De'Aaron Fox, whose struggles and bad decisions cost his team some valuable momentum-shifters.

As such, ahead of the upcoming campaign, longtime NBA analyst Bill Simmons floated the idea that the Spurs should strongly consider dangling Fox and some draft picks away to the Clippers for Darius Garland. 

Well, that is one trade proposal which San Antonio should steer clear from at all costs.

The Spurs swapping out De'Aaron Fox for Darius Garland would be a mistake

Fox turned in a modest campaign last season when viewed through a numbers standpoint, but the reality is he made the All-Star team. While he was a last-minute injury replacement, his body of work especially when he carried the Spurs when Victor Wembanyama got injured early in the season was definitely worthy of an All-Star nod.

Fox mainly deferred to his teammates as the season progressed. He started out well in the playoffs, but he suffered an ankle injury that evidently hampered him later down the road. That is the part which people are glossing over. Not to fully exculpate him for his decisions with the ball, but he should not be judged on the sole basis of his injured form.

Garland, while a bit younger than Fox, is arguably the worse player. While he is no slouch himself, the latter gives San Antonio a more sensible fit with his sheer speed advantage, proven clutch scoring, finishing in the paint, and better defensive acuity. Heck, Garland himself is even more injury-prone than Fox.

That the Spurs would also have to part with draft picks to get rid of Fox's mammoth deal is a turn-off. San Antonio is still years away from being truly limited by his contract, and it makes much more sense for them to see him repair his value before shipping him away when his market rate is at its lowest.

San Antonio has one of the most prudent front offices in the league as they rarely execute trades where they do the conceding. Thus, in all likelihood, a trade framework like this one will not be on their actual radar. And until the actual time of reckoning comes, the Spurs will stick with De'Aaron Fox for better or for worse.