According to Yahoo! Sports, talks between the San Antonio Spurs and free agent Andrei Kirilenko have ended.
The San Antonio Spurs' exploration of acquiring free-agent forward Andrei Kirilenko in a sign-and-trade agreement with the Minnesota Timberwolves has passed without completion, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.
The Spurs seriously considered a multiyear offer for Kirilenko, but Minnesota general manager Flip Saunders has shown little, if any, inclination to assist him in securing a significant financial contract elsewhere, sources said.
There were possible combinations of Spurs assets that appealed to the T'wolves, but ultimately Minnesota was unable – or unwilling – to take back the contracts on what could've been an $8 million to $9 million annual salary agreement for Kirilenko, league sources said.
Had the Spurs reached a deal with Kirilenko, San Antonio would have had a formidable front line with Tim Duncan, Kawhi Leonard and Tiago Splitter. Andrei would have made the Spurs one of the best defensive teams. Not only that, Kirilenko would have chipped in on the offensive side as well giving the Spurs a dual threat with him on board.
Instead, the Spurs recently signed forward Jeff Pendergraph which is a good pick up but not a huge splash had "AK-47" joined the squad. Not to mention, the team re-signed Tiago Splitter and Manu Ginobili which may have put a cramp on more they could have offered to Minnesota to sweeten any proposed deal.
Interesting to note is the report mention of Spurs assets offered to Minnesota. One can only speculate which players may have been offered.
What are your thoughts Spurs fans on the team missing out on Kirilenko?
