The San Antonio Spurs made an unceremonious exit from the 2016 playoffs, after having one of the best regular seasons in the franchise’s history. Their two 2015 offseason acquisitions, LaMarcus Aldridge and David West, developed into the imposing frontcourt assets San Antonio’s front office hoped they would, and it took a Herculean effort from the Oklahoma City Thunder to oust the Spurs from the playoffs in the second round.
Now that younger pieces like Kawhi Leonard, Danny Green, Aldridge and Gary Neal have become the team’s anchors, the Spur former All-Star shooting guard, Manu Ginobli, has seen his role diminish in recent years, which is likely due to age. Ginobli will be 39 next month, and has been in the league since 1999. However, today’s news suggests that he still believes he’s got something left in the tank.
Yahoo! Sports is reporting that Ginobli has opted out of his contract with San Antonio—he was due $2.9 million for the 2016-2017 season—and will be come an unrestricted free agent. The report does state that league sources indicate that Ginobli is leaning towards returning to the Spurs next season.
However, chance are if Manu happens across other tempting offers, that might not be such a foregone conclusion.