As the NBA’s free agent pool becomes thinner and thinner, one of the most intriguing names still on the market is DeMar DeRozan, who should theoretically help teams that need veteran savvy and the kind of wing scorer who can change games when he’s really cooking. Add in that DeRozan’s coming off of his best year as a playmaker and it’s not hard to see why he’d bring value to teams that want to compete.
On Tuesday, one team reportedly began pushing hard to acquire his services via a sign-and-trade, while another is bringing him in for a meeting to see if they can convince him to put pen to paper on a contract. According to Marc Stein, the Chicago Bulls want to try and figure out a sign-and-trade with DeRozan’s ostensibly soon-to-be former team, the San Antonio Spurs, with Lauri Markkanen a potential name that could be moved.
Among the options that have emerged for DeMar DeRozan is a sign-and-trade to Chicago, league sources say.
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) August 3, 2021
The Spurs have been mentioned often as a potential suitor for Bulls restricted free agent Lauri Markkanen, but lasering in on San Antonio’s precise intentions is always a challenge.
More NBA from me: https://t.co/A6ycVmnrjq
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) August 3, 2021
Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reports that the Los Angeles Clippers are likewise interested in figuring out a way to bring DeRozan on board with Kawhi Leonard sidelined following ACL surgery, although that might be a little tricky.
The Clippers do not have the cap space to sign the four-time All-Star to a deal near his true value. It would take some major cap contorting to clear the necessary cap space.
All the team has at its disposal is the $5.3 million taxpayer midlevel exception. A sign-and-trade with the San Antonio Spurs — DeRozan’s previous team — could also be an option, but it’s unclear if the Clippers have the assets the Spurs would want.
Both of these teams are in slightly different places — the Bulls made a ton of moves to make themselves a playoff team when free agency began, while the Clippers have had championship aspirations for several years — but DeRozan appears to have some options as to what he’s going to do next.