Spurs, LaMarcus Aldridge agree on three-year, $72.3 million extension
The San Antonio Spurs and forward LaMarcus Aldridge have agreed on a three-year extension worth a combined total of $72.3 million, a person with knowledge of the deal confirmed to Paste BN Sports. Aldridge will opt into the 2018-19 season on his deal (worth $22.3 million), and the new deal runs through the 2020-21 season.
The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the terms of the deal are not typically disclosed.
And with that, a Western Conference contender pays a steep price for stability.
It was just three months ago that Aldridge was known to be displeased with his situation in San Antonio. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich hadn’t pulled any punches in assessing Aldridge’s playoff failures against the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals, and the weeks that followed their postseason exit were full of rumblings that the five-time All-Star was on the trading block.
But as Aldridge himself recounted in a July interview with ESPN, all it took was two meetings with Popovich during the summer to clear the air. They discussed Aldridge’s frustrations with playing style and fit, and now here they are.
Yet while this deal might look ill-advised in Aldridge’s later years, the truth is the Spurs were somewhat stuck here. With an MVP-caliber talent like Kawhi Leonard on their roster at the prime age of 26, and knowing full well that he could choose to become a free agent as soon as two summers from now, this was no time to have him wondering where the help would be coming from in the future.
It’s a calculated risk, what with Aldridge’s age (he turned 32 in July) and the past troubles with this team fit. But with new addition Rudy Gay having made his way back from the Achilles tendon tear that ended his last season in Sacramento, and fellow veterans like Pau Gasol and Manu Ginobili trying to hold the fort down while the Spurs get healthy, Aldridge’s deal should come as no surprise – now that we know these fences were mended.
As for Leonard, he missed the entire preseason with a right quadriceps injury and is expected to miss the regular season opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday. And Aldridge, with a new contract in hand, will be asked to carry a larger load without him.
ESPN and The Vertical first reported the terms of the Aldridge deal.
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