Do you understand what a sunk cost is? The money is spent. It doesn't matter what they intended him to do when they signed him. The money.is.spent. So if the money is spent no matter what, and nobody is going to take the contract off your hands, without you giving up something of value to sweeten the deal? You just figure you have the luxury of a top-notch backup C, and move on. That's what a sunk cost is all about.
If you ditch Pau, you still have to go out and get another C. Do you not see that? Even if you think Dedmon is the starter next year, you still need a backup. And, no, Bertans isn't an NBA Center - not even a backup. That's worse than forcing David West or David Lee to be a center. I don't care what you, or anybody else here says, Bertans is not a center. Period.
Ditch Pau, and you automatically have to go try and find a bargain-priced big man. It just keeps getting worse. There's nothing you can do about Pau's salary that doesn't weaken the team more. I can't see him opting out of that big paycheck. Do you remember what the Spurs had to do to get rid of Jackie Butler's contract? How did that work out? Say it with me... sunk cost.
There's a chance the Spurs will gain some cap flex with Parker's contract, if he's not on the team next year. Otherwise, they're stuck with that big contract as well. Because now there's really nobody who is going to pick it up, without the Spurs mortgaging the future to get it done.
This. This right here is what I was talking about in the preseason.