The Toronto Raptors brought Austrian center Jakob Pöltl back to Canada from the San Antonio Spurs. In return, according to Adrian Wojnarowski, the Spurs will receive from ESPN Big Man Khem Birch and a first-round pick.
The pick from 2024 is protected, although the exact terms are not yet known. The Texans also received two second-round picks. Pöltl spent the first two years of his NBA career with the Raptors, who drafted him with the ninth pick in the 2016 draft. In 2018 he landed in San Antonio as part of the blockbuster trade involving Kawhi Leonard.
Rumors have been circulating for the past few days that the Raptors would be interested in returning, although head coach Gregg Popovich had denied this: “We’re not really in the business of trades,” he said on Monday after the defeat at the Chicago Bulls. the ninth in a row.
Pöltl has scored 12.1 points and 9.1 rebounds for Spurs this season and has sunk 62 percent of his shots. Add 1.2 blocks. At the end of the season, Pöltl, who currently earns $9.4 million, becomes a free agent. However, Wojnarowski indicated that Toronto is looking to a longer-term collaboration. This is theoretically not a problem due to the existing Bird rights.
Birch, who has a contract through 2024 ($6.7 and $7 million), made just 20 caps for the Raptors in 22/23, 2.2 points and 1.3 rebounds are Career Loews. As a result of the deal, the Spurs (14-41, second-worst record in the Western Conference) are $25.6 million below cap and have amassed a whopping 13 hour picks through 2029. It is expected that this number could even increase before the trade deadline.