Kelly Olynyk goes for a contested layup during his time with the Boston Celtics. Credit: Wikimedia Commons / Keith Allison

The San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday acquired big man Kelly Olynyk in a trade with the Washington Wizards, which sends young guards Malaki Branham and Blake Wesley to the Eastern Conference, ESPN’s Shams Charania reports.

The trade for the 6-foot-11 Olynyk comes about a week after the Silver and Black acquired former Celtics center Luke Kornet in free agency, meaning the Spurs now have two dependable backup bigs for franchise player Victor Wembanyama.

Olynyk, 34, averaged 8.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists last season, during which he played for both the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans. He also hit a career high of 41.8% from the 3-point line.

New Orleans traded Olynyk to Washington just three days ago, and he never got the chance to play for the team. He’s on an expiring contract that ends next season and is owed $13.4 million.

The trade marks the end of the line for Branham and Wesley in San Antonio. Both barely cracked the rotation, even though they were first-round picks in the 2022 NBA Draft. Branham only averaged 3.7 points per game, while Branham averaged 5.

With the Spurs now having three reliable big men on the roster, it’s unclear whether the franchise will move to re-sign 6’10 center Charles Bassey, who’s an unrestricted free agent.

Subscribe to SA Current newsletters.

Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Or sign up for our RSS Feed

Related Stories

This article appears in Jun 26 – Jul 9, 2025.

Michael Karlis is a multimedia journalist at the San Antonio Current, whose coverage in print and on social media focuses on local and state politics. He is a graduate of American University in Washington,...