NBA Rumors: Is Greg Monroe the Spurs’ Replacement for Tim Duncan?

Jul 27, 2016 09:59 AM EDT

With Tim Duncan now retired, the San Antonio Spurs are certainly facing a void in their current lineup. According to rumors, one way they can solve this is by getting Greg Monroe from the Milwaukee Bucks through a possible trade.

Duncan announced his retirement earlier this month. Aside from spending twenty years with the team, he was also one of the Spurs' most reliable power forward and center.

Since his departure, the Spurs have utilized various to fill the void he left behind by getting new big men such as Pau Gasol and Dewayne Dedmon.

Still, despite being on the lineup, Gasol and Dedmon still cannot boost the team's presence on the pain in the same way that Duncan did. However, according to recent rumors, it seems the team is doing something about this by getting Monroe, according to Yibada.

Speculations about the Spurs doing a deal with the Bucks for Monroe started after the Milwaukee franchise reportedly placed the player on the trading block. Although it is not yet clear if this is true, reports suggested that it may have something to do with the dip in his performance.

But, with Monroe on San Antonio's lineup, he can certainly serve as a good backup for Gasol and Dedmon and boost the team's front-court depth. Also, Monroe is still a young player. This means the Spurs have the option to give the 26-year-old athlete a long-term contract if he performs well in the team.

However, if the Spurs are serious in getting Monroe, then they should probably act fast since another team that's rumored to be interested in him are the New York Knicks.

As noted by the Morning Ledger, like the Spurs, the Knicks are also in serious need of a replacement center. Currently, they have Joakim Noah. However, aside from his age, he is also prone to injuries. For a team looking to reach the playoffs, it would be acceptable to keep a player that has a huge chance of missing out the rest of the season.

But aside from serving as a replacement, Monroe can also boost coach Derek Fisher's triangle offense because of his ability as a low-post scorer.