The San Antonio Spurs may be No. 1 in free agent LaMarcus Aldridge's heart but not in his bank account.
The San Antonio Express-News reported that sharpshooter Danny Green almost certainly would be a casualty of an Aldridge move from the Portland Trail Blazers to the Spurs. And even then, the franchise that won the 2014 NBA championship would need to get creative.
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The Express-News added that signing Aldridge to a max deal would push the Spurs' salary cap to $62.9 million, about $4.1 million under the cap. The problem for San Antonio is that only seven players would be under the cap as structured: Tony Parker, Tiago Splitter, Boris Diaw, Patty Mills, Kyle Anderson, Kawhi Leonard and Aldridge.
The Spurs still would need to address free agents Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Green, Cory Joseph, Marco Belinelli, Aron Baynes, Jeff Ayres, Matt Bonner and Reggie Williams.
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According to the Express-News, Duncan's cap number would be $15.5 million, so they would need to relinquish his rights and then offer a more team-friendly offer, using multiple years to get him close to the $10.3 million he made last season.
The team also would have to relinquish Ginobili's rights at $10.5 million and have to get him to agree to the midlevel exception of $2.8 million, which does not count against the cap.
The Express-News calls Ginobili's situation simple, but he would be taking a $4.2 million pay cut from 2014-15. That has to make Ginobili at least pause before re-signing.
Some of the creative budgeting takes into account that several of the Spurs would sacrifice money to remain with a perennial champion. San Antonio conceivably also could send out feelers to gauge whether Aldridge would give them a discount for the honor of playing with a perennial contender.
That's what could be making the Los Angeles Lakers' hope more viable. They have the money to spend and would make Aldridge more of a focal point than a fit-in player, as he still would be with the Spurs.
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