The San Antonio Spurs are usually not mentioned in NBA trade rumors, but after dealing with a number of injuries, the team could get involved at the deadline and names like Carlos Boozer, Taj Gibson, Mike Dunleavy and Kirk Hinrich from the Chicago Bulls could be in play for San Antonio and some players that could move include Matt Bonner and Boris Diaw.
The Spurs are usually happy to just sit tight at the deadline and ride their trio of Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker, but this year things are a bit different, as all three have another year under their belts and Ginobili has gone down with an injury. According to ESPN.com, Ginobili will be out for at least three weeks and it could extend to a month and that is why the team may look for some trade options at the deadline. Ginobili is not the only player dealing with injuries, as Danny Green, Kawhi Leonard and Tiago Splitter are also out of the lineup and that has tightened things up for the Spurs and has forced Gregg Popovich to play Duncan and Parker for more minutes and that could be an issue as it gets later in the season.
San Antonio likely will not try and pull off a big move, but they would like to add some depth heading into the back stretch of the season and the Bulls could be a trade partner. Names like Evan Turner, Thaddeus Young and Dion Waiters are also available, but the team likely will go for lesser names than that and players like Taj Gibson, Carlos Boozer, Mike Dunleavy and Kirk Hinrich might be available by the Bulls. Chicago has not yet given up on this season even after trading away Luol Deng and the next couple weeks will dictate what the franchise decides to do heading into the deadline.
Splitter had been out since early January and the injuries will start to hit even harder once the team takes their 10 game road trip due to the annual rodeo. Ginobili has been solid with 12.1 points and 4.5 assists per game this season and the team will be hoping for a speedy return. CBS Sports reported earlier in the season that the Spurs would be aggressive at the deadline and while that hasn't happened yet, it still could go down and the Ginobili injury only adds to that.
Ginobili is already 36 and Parker is 31 and add that to Duncan at 37, that's three very old players and they are making a nice amount of money, meaning this could be the final chance for a championship run. That could spark the team to make a trade for a number of players and while they love Matt Bonner and what he brings, he could be a good trade chip to use.