San Antonio Spurs Trade Rumors 2016: Jonathan Simmons Slowly Showing His Value
The San Antonio Spurs routed the Milwaukee Bucks, 123-98 last Wednesday. Well, it's not really a kind of surprising news for the surging Spurs, unless the talk is about Jonathan Simmons.
Wait, who?
Jonathan Simmons is a shooting guard who has spent time with the Spurs and the D-League. He was recently called up for NBA duties and performed well, scoring 18 points for Gregg Popovich's squad in the process. He's one of the few players currently transitioning and switching stints in the D-League and the NBA who are making a significant impact once given the opportunity.
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For now, he's basically a "nobody." But knowing the Spurs organization, he could someday become another prized possession or even a trade bait for an aging bunch of reliable veterans in San Antonio. Everyone knows what happened to the virtual unknowns like Manu Ginobili Tony Parker, and Kawhi Leonard. Now look at what they've accomplished so far. It is possible that Simmons is slowly being molded into a franchise player?
Parker was selected by the Spurs as the 28th pick in the 2001 Draft, while Ginobili was picked even lower, at 57th in the 1999 Draft. They both became crucial pieces of the Spurs' four championships, Parker winning a Finals MVP and Ginobili winning the Sixth Man of the Year award.
The thing with the Spurs is that they're the best in the league when it comes to taking a much closer look at a talent. But it doesn't end there. The kind of culture the organization has breeds development and that is what exactly will happen to Simmons. He may still be young and inexperienced, but the talent is there, and Popovich is not passing on the opportunity.
But since the Spurs are on the "win now" situation, they might not be able to use Simmons with utmost efficiency right now. But in a year's time, they can use him as a pretty good player that some other teams might be interested in. Hence, trading him for a proven veteran scorer or contributor of some kind can be beneficial to them.
