A midseason trade might be the best thing for the Spurs no matter what

The Spurs have the deepest roster they've had in a very long time. Maybe ever. The main 12 guys currently under contract deserve consistent minutes, even the rookies. Carter Bryant and Dylan Harper will both bring tools that help San Antonio re-establish themselves as one of the premier teams in the Western Conference—a status that they held for two decades.

Malaki Branham and Blakes Wesley are gone. They didn't play much, and it was easy to see why, so fans didn't complain. Jordan McLaughlin will play that role this season. But if Keldon Johnson, Bryant, Champagnie, or someone else who can contribute isn't getting minutes, you're wasting players who could be used for something else, like trade fodder.

Spurs must let the players compete but trade someone at the deadline

Spurs depth chart

PG- Fox/Harper/McLaughlin
SG- Castle/Bryant
SF- Vassell/Champagnie/Johnson
PF- Barnes/Sochan
C- Wembanyama/Kornet/Olynyk

As large as the conversation about depth in the NBA has become, there is no team in the league that deploys a 12-man rotation. The Spurs still have two roster spots open, too, so they'll have to add two more players before the start of the season. There are still another three months to go before the games begin, so Brian Wright could always make another move to shake things up, but it's okay if he doesn't, yet.

Keldon Johnson has had his name floated in rumors for the past year or two, and it feels like a "where there's smoke, there's fire" situation. Just because they haven't pulled the trigger on a deal doesn't mean they haven't shopped him. It just means that either they didn't think whatever deals were presented at the time benefited them, or they changed their minds and wanted to give him more time.

Carter Bryant is the writing on the wall for KJ, though. Wright talked about how highly they coveted Bryant before the draft. They even tried to move up to select him, but it wasn't necessary since he fell into their laps at 14. How quickly he acclimates to the professional game could be a determining factor in how quickly the Silver and Black move off their most tenured player.

Harrison Barnes is the other player you could see the Spurs moving during the season. He's entering the last year of his deal, and if Jeremy Sochan steps up his offense, San Antonio could choose to move Barnes and his $18 million to another team looking to clear some cap space. Looking at the power forward position, it's the main one that fans should be side-eyeing the most.

Barnes is older and doesn't defend like he once did, but he was the team's best shooter. Sochan is an inconsistent offensive player but is a stellar defender. Is there a package they could put together to get someone who's fairly reliable at both? Maybe. But first, you have to see if the cream rises to the top.

They may not even want to bring in additional players if the rotation Coach Johnson lands on is dynamic enough. In that case, you'd just stack additional assets. The more the merrier. Either way, it would be silly to end the season with the same roster that they'll start with.