Report: Spurs could go after Aldridge in free agency

It's a long way from happening, but Grantland's Zach Lowe threw out some interesting possibilities in his Wednesday column.

Lowe reports, per executive sources, that the San Antonio Spurs plan on going after current Portland Trail Blazer and soon-to-be-unrestricted-free-agent power forward LaMarcus Aldridge this summer. 

That is, if Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili choose to retire. 

As Lowe points out, the Spurs have waited on a Kawhi Leonard extension in order to max out cap space in the event (no guarantee) that the veterans pack it in. Leonard will be a restricted free agent this summer, and San Antonio can (and will) match any offer he gets.

The Spurs are reportedly also interested in fellow free-agent-to-be Marc Gasol.

Again, this is assuming Duncan retires.

Either way, it's an interesting story through the prism of how the Spurs would look to try and maintain their accustomed level of success after big names retire. By the time Hall of Fame center David Robinson retired in 2003, Duncan and Tony Parker had already emerged as stars, not unlike Leonard now.

Aldridge has spoken of his desire to play his entire career in Portland, but minds can be changed during free agency and Aldridge does hail from Texas (albeit Dallas).

Having said all this, the Blazers still own his Bird Rights. That means he can get a fifth year from Portland - as opposed to four elsewhere - and about $30 million more.