On De’Aaron Fox, contract extension, and the San Antonio Spurs

On De’Aaron Fox, contract extension, and the San Antonio Spurs

It’s time for the Spurs and De’arra Fox to come to the table should he get that extension. You are Locked on Spurs, your daily San Antonio Spurs podcast, part of the locked on podcast network. Your team every day. Welcome back to Locked On Spurs, the Lock NBA network. I’m your host, Jeff Garcia, Spurs writer for Kins. Glad to have you all back. Hope you’re having a great Monday. Hope you had a great weekend and uh yeah, you know, we definitely appreciate y’all coming here to lock on Spurs River. Get your favorite podcast, iTunes, Spotify, Kensy Plus app, YouTube. You know what to do. Keep those subscriptions going. They’re getting higher and higher each day. We definitely appreciate it here. You guys are the everydayers. What are we talking about today? Well, it’s that time of that, you know, in the future where we’re all projecting about Darren Fox coming to the Spurs. We knew that that extension was going to be looming. Well, let’s see here. As of yesterday, he is eligible for that contract extension with San Antonio. Will he get it? Should he get it? What do I test tell us? What does that eye test tell us about him on the court to make him worthy of that? What are some options financially the Spurs can pursue? Maybe they don’t give him a full extension. Can you imagine that? Well, we’re going to get to all that and more. Yeah, it’s it’s a big decision for the Spurs and the future of this rebuild. But either way, where we spin it, not a bad player to have on that roster. Let’s go and bring in our guest. And look who is back, everybody. Casey Vieira, my good friend, former colleague at Ken’s 5 San Antonio. Casey, how you doing? By the way, I hate to disappoint you. I don’t have a contract extension on the table for you. So, sorry about that. When you do, is it as lucrative as nearly uh $230 million? H how about this? Would you be okay with a uh Chili’s gift card for about 20 bucks? 25 and you got a deal. All right, easy. I’ll take that deal. Any time I get Casey on my team, it’s worth the extra five bucks. Make sure to follow Casey on next at Casey_vie. Do that right now. So, um, big days possibly ahead for the Spurs and Darren Fox. Casey, that extension have been looming since he became a Spur. Well, it’s here now. Um, as of this recording, he has not signed uh extension with San Antonio, but these things likely will take time. Uh, again, he was extension eligible over the weekend. You know, likely unlikely that, you know, they’ll get a deal done, but there’s here we are. So, before we get into some of the numbers and options the team and Fox can pursue, we didn’t really get a big sample size of him on the court. I think about a little bit over 10 games and that was it. So, we don’t know, but we do have a big sample. So, obviously, he’s been in the league for a while now. He’s been a former all-star. He did some damage with the Kings, you know, playoff run. So, he’s a good player, but we don’t know how he’ll fit in this rebuild moving forward. And then not to forget Casey, the three guard lineup the team now has. Do you still see him as a big piece to this rebuild or maybe just a piece to the rebuild? I I think I think he’s a big piece. Okay. Uh, I I I think you go with what you know, the larger sample size and that even though it’s a handful of games that he and Victor got to play last season and really a handful of games that he himself played in San Antonio, I think you go with what you know and and that’s a guy who is a all-star caliber point guard year in year out. a guy who a guy who looks like he’s going to pair well or at least complement Victor’s skill set very well and vice versa and make the team infinitely better at the point guard position. I think you go with what you know. Uh, like you said though, the Dylan Harper aspect of it certainly muddies things a little bit because you don’t know how that log jam, if it becomes a log jam, you don’t know if it’s going to become a log jam and too much repetition at at at one position, really two positions, or it’s going to be fluid. Uh, and so I could see a world where that does impact or at least have some sort of provoke some sort of conversation about this extension and whether it happens midseason or not. Yeah. If Dylan Harper was not here, if the Spurs don’t end up with that number two pick, I don’t I think this is done by now. But I think the element of Harper being here and a little bit more fluidity to it uh a and presenting something and and again it goes to their commitment to Harper and Castle as well, right? If they look at the three of them and maybe Castle essentially is the odd man out of the with the or something like that. I I believe I would believe to think it’s not the case uh from a a monetary standpoint in that lens, but you just never know. Uh but I think right now you probably pull the trigger on the extension in some capacity. Yeah. And look, we had a small sample size and but in that small sample size, man, did he he put some numbers out. I got it right here. 24.8 points per game, 6.1 assists, 4.2 rebounds, 1.5 steals per game in that partial season with San Antonio post Sacramento trade. So that that definitely aligns with that all-star caliber player the Spurs had been looking for. Now you you know I want to go back to this whole you know three guard lineup thing you know and Fox I it feels like everybody’s looking at Fox as the odd man out like what if it’s Harper you know we forget you know he what has Harper done in the NBA as of this nothing as of now nothing right so we we we we don’t know so I think it is perhaps more prudent for the Spurs to lock up Darren Fox because it’s not a sealed deal that Harper is going to be the real deal in the NBA. Now, Vegas summer league, sure, he looked good, you know, but that was against summer league competition, not NBA competition. We’ll see in a few months how that how that pans out. All sides are pointing that he will be a player that will make an impact on the court, but then you just don’t know. That’s why they call it a lottery because you just don’t know if you’re going to hit. So, we’ll soon find out. But so I think that’s why you lock up a guy who’s known as you mentioned known commodity in the NBA proven numbers. We just read him right now what he did to San Antonio and so much more. And then here’s this too Casey. Can you imag you got to imagine you know when the deal was made with Sacramento they must have told Fox and his team like yeah we got your back come extension time because he wanted to come to San Antonio and that’ll be a bad look in the Spurs if they don’t give him that extension. Your thoughts? Yeah, but I think it goes back to the Harper thing though. I don’t I don’t think Harper was necessarily in those conversations or the idea of it was prevalent in those conversations when the Fox thing, the Fox deal was was happening. Uh I don’t think the extension I I feel like it’s a little bit more complex now. Okay. I feel like it’s a little bit more the the scenarios because of the Harper and Castle dynamic and the money and the aprons, it becomes a little bit muddier now because you look at the hypothetical scenarios of of what they could do and what behooves Fox, what behooves the team. Mhm. But you’re talking about the Harper aspect of things. If Harper after I I’m thinking in a world, okay, where they go two years, player option on the third. And in that world, say you have a, if you’re the Spurs, you have a better idea of what Harper is after two seasons. what would be three seasons. Three seasons by now you have a pretty good idea of what he is at that point or trend in that direction. Same would apply for Castle. Does that make you more or are are they best served doing something like that? And as a result, it speaks more to if they do do that. In my mind, it speaks more to the aspect of investing in Harper and Castle and they really want to dedicate their time and effort and their energy to maximizing and seeing what they get out of that. Yeah. and giving Fox potentially that two years with an opt out to the third which would put him on the free free agent market with a player option at the end of the uh so what would that be the 2829 season it would probably be the it would be the same summer that Stefon Castle would hit restricted free agency I could see that scenario playing out and then I could also see that playing out from the the Fox side of things because if Fox does his job and Fox plays at a near all-star caliber level. It’s going to be another opportunity for him to get a long-term extension and more money, assuming it would be the max deal, than the potential 229 million that he would be get if you were to sign this contract in the next few days to get locked up in four years entirely with no options presumably uh after after year four. uh camp all the way through and and would it be the best for f Fox’s best move as well? I’m not entirely sure. Yeah, I mean you can argue both sides as to why maybe you don’t give the full extension. You throw in those player options, not because the Spurs do not not want to give them that extension, but because it allows more flexibility because you’re looking at NBA teams just panicking over the aprons. What has going on in Boston? That team is they blew it up. They they blew ownership got out. You know, they saw that coming. Remember what uh what was it? The Denver GM said about the April. He was Yeah. He said the worst thing you possibly could. Yeah. He said like he goes they could envision a day where they might have to trade Joker. I mean although the Spurs are at least as of now they’re not close to that first apron, but they’re likely look staring at it in the face. It’s probably like a bullet staring at them right now because of so many players they have to uh get signed. And that is not just Fox, but that’s Wimi, that’s Castle, that’s Harper. And we talked about Sohan. Sohan, we haven’t talked about KJ. We never talked about Devin. These guys are going to want to get paid. So then that’s where the Spurs are kind of in a, you know, rocking a hard place. Like, do you pay out? This team historically doesn’t. They don’t. They’re they don’t have deep pockets like Knicks, Lakers, Golden State Warriors. They they just don’t. So things will have to be well things things will have to change in the future. But see that’s why I think those options can really help with the flexibility. You know we’re not done talking about this topic. When we get back we’re going to continue talking about the Fox and Spurs contract extension. Uh what is there another option maybe the Spurs and Fox can pursue? Uh should they just give them flat out the money and call it a day and let the chips fall where they may? We’re talk about that and more right here on Locked on Spurs. But first I want to talk about monarch money. You ever wish managing your money felt a little easier? With Monic Money, it can be. Whether you’re growing your savings or planning a big purchase, Monik puts you in the driver’s seat. It’s like having your own personal CFO. Gives you full visibility and control of your finances. Monic Money is more than just a budgeting app. It’s complete financial command center. You can track all your accounts, investment, spending all in one spot. So, in addition to managing your money, you’re building your wealth. Hey, look, it can do so much. You can track your spending. You can check if you’re spending way too much on takeout or subscriptions. Maybe they add up more than you expected. You know what? Even if you’re sharing finance with somebody else, Monarch will help you all stay on the same page. If you have a financial goal, it’ll get you to it. And yeah, ever wish you could see all your accounts and spending one spot, that’s where Monarch comes in. Take control your finances with Monarch Money. Use code Lanba. Monarchmoney.com. That’s 50% off your first year as well. That’s Monarchmoney.com. The code is lockba for half off your first year. Joined by Casey Vieier. Follow him on X at Casecore Vier. Do that ASAP. subscriber locked on Spurs right now over on YouTube at Ken 5 plus. Hey, we’re talking about Darren Fox Spurs contract extension. Just how many avenues paths you could take with this whole topic here from G just flat out give them the money, call it a day, you know, that’s one less head you got to worry about. There should both sides kind of help one another. And you brought it up in the first segment, Casey. Maybe you don’t give them the max like now or sometime, you know, this week or whenever it happens, but you allow for flexibility. And you mentioned a two-year player option. That’s one. But why not do something shorter and give a player maybe a three-year at 50 mil each that works with everybody? That helps everybody. You know, he gets paid maybe not the max, but you leave that player option in there. The Spurs have more room financially to work with in what three years from now, what was that 20 28 29 area? Yeah. It just it just feels like perhaps the player option aspect of it could help everybody including Fox and the Spurs. Your thoughts? the more we the more we talk about this out loud, I I think honestly because of uh because of that three guard dynamic like they’re going to put into the investment of of learning and and and the growth of of Fox and Harper uh excuse me of uh Castle and Harper. I think that two you whether whether it is two whether it’s three I think falling short whatever from a year standpoint I think coming short of the full four years whether that that is an option for that last year on a uh on a three-year deal or not going the the the length of the full four years might be beneficial for everybody here. Mhm. I I I I didn’t think so initially. You know, when we talked about recording this segment, I was thinking, okay, yeah, it’s kind of a no-brainer. Buck’s going to give him you you pay him what he wants that close to that that 4 228. So maybe maybe he does you a favor and and spots you and you hit at 220 or something like that. And that way you can every every little margin counts. So any that 7 mil that he’ll save you I guess whatever that would be like two essentially $2 million a year if that point point being maybe he does he he does you a solid and saves you a little bit of money on that front. I am not entirely sold though now the more we talk this out if that’s the most practical thing for both parties. I I don’t uh I I think that Fox, if he does his job and he maximizes his talents because he’s he’s only going to be 30 years old by the time by the time he would hit year three in that in that contract. So, there’s still a a nice long-term contract, his probably his last his last long-term contract in the league, at least at a sizable number that he’s going to be eligible for to take him through age 34, age, right? Age 30. Oh, I guess if he opted out at 30, uh, age 30, it would take him when he signed a new four-year deal, that would put him, you know, his last good payday through age 34. And I’m sure he’s kind of hearing that on his same side as well. Uh and then again on that Spurs lens of thing I I lens of things I just think because Castle was so good last year at what he did because of the investment in Harper, you have to put a real a real seed into the thought process of whether it’s best to fall a year short of that. Mhm. to consider that number that you may have to potentially pay both of those guys and the impact that would have on Fox. I think you have to like you have to really strongly consider it especially considering and they and they say sometimes don’t maximize or or or compound a bad situation or good situation based on the deal that you made at the trade at the at the trade deadline. um you know uh getting a guy in a contract year I should say like they did you know an example you know just because you gave a lot for a player at the deadline doesn’t mean you have to give him a full a full four-year deal if it doesn’t work then just cut ties then I am kind of of the belief that given that they they did not give up a ton for Fox anyways that maybe they do bite on giving them that extension you know that that the lengthier one regardless just because they did not give up a lot. And honestly, I think above all else, dude, I I I think you have to weigh heavily into and I’m not saying anything we don’t already know. We have to weigh heavily of how well the the Webby and Fox dynamic does. Yeah. And could be a scenario why this might go into the mid-season. Yeah. Yeah. And and yeah, they could take a this brother could take a wait and see approach to, okay, let’s see how y’all really look together outside of a little over 10 games, right, before you you got sheld Fox and Wimi. Yeah, but we we got to see. Yeah, it definitely is complicated. You know, there’s so many pros, you know, obviously he’s an Savvers Allstar. You know, he the little bit of time, you know, he played with San Antonio last year. He put up numbers. Uh he wanted to come to San Antonio. He made it known that that was his destination to get traded to. uh you know you know it would be a bad look on the Spurs if if they give him anything short or don’t work with him at least and to ensure that he gets paid. Yeah, there’s so many complex things ultimately. Oh man, you know, think about this too. You know, at, you know, by the time Harper and Castle are really hitting their stride, you know, entering their peak, you got Fox that is slowly coming out maybe he’s already on the back end of it. You know, what do you do then? Do you do you have a player whose contract is going to be hard to move at that point, right? So yeah, it’s so complicated. Another thing too is do you want to be paying essentially in a few years $400 million for at the same position, right? Or three guys at the same position. Same position that practically do the same thing. As of now, we don’t know who’s going to take a leap, but as of now, they do the same thing. Yeah. Exactly. Yeah. Yeah. Ultimately, I think Okay. Do you think by end of this week the deal’s done or no? I’m going to say no. I’m going to say no. Yeah, I’m going to say no. Yeah, I’m going to say no. Do Do you think they should max him out then, man? See, that’s where I guess I don’t know. I’m going to say no. Yeah, I would say no because I I just think the Harper the Harper mudd the situation just muddied things up so much in the good sense and a bad sense. I think you work with him and get close to it, but you don’t give him the big man. You like you mentioned the the options. Yeah. Give him a payday, you know, give him that uh ascending kind of sign. may make it a sending so he gets paid more and more after every year, you know, but leave that option open again just to help everybody involved including Fox to get paid more. Um, uh, because you got the salary cap’s going to be rising higher every year. So, that helps. They’re moving to MB is moving to Amazon, so the TV money is going to increase. So, there there there’s options here. But, we I don’t know. I don’t know. As of right now, I’m going to say no. But, get them close to it, though. I don’t think I think it gets done. Yeah. I think I I don’t I don’t think it gets done. I I just think I think they want to see how it works, the three guard lineup. And I I think they’re willing I think they’re willing to make the gamble. Yeah. Of letting it play out a little bit. Yeah. Um and getting a better idea of at of a full season, half season. I I think they’ll want to see some time with it. Yeah. I love to see how Mitch Johnson I’m sorry Mitch Johnson Brian Wright handles those discussions if I’m there I’m bringing in pop I’m bringing Buford let’s all talk together but the thing is it’s just there’s just that they have to watch they have to see if it works. Yeah they have they have to see if it works now and I think I don’t think while the sample size was good the sample size is not totally enough. Yeah. you factor in the Harper part of it. Yeah, it’s just not it’s just not enough. And I without the Harper side of it, I think this is done. But because there is the Harper aspect of it now, I think they’re going to hit the pause button on that for a little while. All right, we’ll see what they do. But make sure you all tell us what do you think the Spurs should do. Give it the max right now. Work with him. Maybe make it a little more lucrative towards the end. You know, just so many options. What do you think you Spurs should do? Let Casey know on next case. Let me know on next at Jeff G. Spurs zone. We’ll be back to wrap up this episode of Lockdown Spurs. But first, I want to talk about 5 hour energy. Time to fuel up and turn it up with 5our energy transfusion. It brings the bold grape ginger and lime flavor of your favorite golf drink minus the alcohol into a quick energizing shot. Whether you’re seeking birdies or just making memories with friends, this aoleinone for your energy game. Let’s be honest, some days in the course you’re often. You just need a little extra boost to stay sharp and energized. That’s where 5h hour energy transfusion comes in. Look, you ever had a weirdest course you ever played? Maybe you had some odd challenges on the uh golf course that really threw off your game. Hey, you know what? Maybe that 5h hour energy transfusion could have helped you out and give you that extra boost again to stay sharp and energized. That’s why you got to go get 5 hour energy transfusion. Golf is all about good times with good people and good flavors. Of course, the grape ginger lime flavor gives you the best parts of your clubhouse goto without chasing down the bev card. If you go to 5hour energy.com today, that is the number five hourgy.com. You can use my promo code locked on golf to receive 20% off your order. This offer is only valid until September 30th on one order and cannot be used with other promotions. The code is not good on subscription orders. So whether you’re meeting up with friends or trying to turn 18 holes into 36, get the energizing boost you need to power through. Order transfusion flavor 5 hour energy shots today. We’re back right here. Locked on Spurs is joined by Casey Vier. Follow my next case. Do that right now. Some quick Spurs news in case you missed it. Uh Deon Vel, yeah, he’s not sleeping this off seasonason. He got to the ring in San Antonio, the boxing ring that is stay in peak shape. But let me tell you, Casey, he looks like he added a lot more size to his frame. He got bigger. Boy, he got more. I thought I was I thought I was a big dude. No, no, he I thought he might be bigger than he Yeah. No, he’s on the 50 set of 54. Yeah. He’s got to muscle up a little bit because somebody’s got to play power forward. That’s right. That’s right. Good lineup, right? In other Spurs news, Jeremy Sohan is getting ready for Euro Basket 2025. He is with team Poland right now. uh going through I guess team Poland training camp ahead of the the tournament which will be a fun one too. Then you have like Joker is playing in it. Obviously Sohan’s playing in it. Camper has team France. They’ll have some really good NBA French basketball players on that squad. So it should be a tournament uh everybody will be watching and I believe it kicks off this month at the end of the month. So we’ll see how team Poland does out there in Eurobasket 2025. In other Spurs news, Victor Wayyama announced that his hoop gambit chess/basketball tournament will return next year. It was a huge success. It’s a like his way of giving back to the city that he grew up in France. And he likes to test the mind and test the physical skills. So, leave me a Wimi Casey to think of something like this. You know, this reminds me of chess boxing. There is a such thing as called chess boxing. I’m not kidding you. Where boxers beat each other up, then they play chess. Not kidding. Uh, you get the feeling Webby will stumble his way into it and just like I’m sure he’s ready to drive management crazy. Exactly. Exactly. All right, there’s your quick Spurs news and notes. Uh, yeah. Casey, we appreciate you coming here on Lockdown Spurs. As always, we thank you for taking your time out of your schedule and giving your thoughts. Can’t wait to see what the Spurs do with the Fox and the contract extension. We’ll definitely keep you here. Yeah. Follow my next at Casey Vier and thank you for making lockdown spurs your first listen each and every day. Freedom Bill where we get podcast. We’ll be back on Wednesday. Maybe we talk about a Fox extension. We don’t know. We’ll see. Well, we’ll do that all right here on Lock. Subscribe at YouTube, iTunes, Spotify, K plus app. You know what to do. But for Casey Ver, I am Jeff Garcia. We’re going to put a lock on this episode of Locked on Spurs. [Music]

De’Aaron Fox’s possible contract extension with the San Antonio Spurs hangs in the balance. Will the All-Star guard secure his future in silver and black?

Host Jeff Garcia and guest Casey Viera dissect De’Aaron Fox’s potential long-term deal, exploring his fit alongside Victor Wembanyama and the financial implications for the San Antonio Spurs’ rebuild.

The duo analyzes how young guards Dylan Harper and Stephon Castle could impact Fox’s extension, weighing the pros and cons of various contract structures. From salary cap considerations to player options, no stone is left unturned in this comprehensive breakdown of the Spurs’ pivotal decision.

0:00 Intro: De’Aaron Fox’s contract extension eligibility
5:13 Fox’s impressive stats with the Spurs
9:54 Flexibility options and NBA salary cap concerns
14:11 Potential shorter-term contract scenarios for Fox
18:26 Weighing Fox’s fit with Wembanyama and young guards
24:11 Spurs news: Vassell boxing, Sochan at EuroBasket

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