4 Offseason moves the Spurs may already regret not making

After a 3-17 start for the San Antonio Spurs, their off-season moves have come under increased scrutiny. Although the Spurs had an active off-season that saw them make four trades, they passed up on the opportunity to acquire several All-Stars.

In retrospect, given their ugly start, it's obvious that they should have been more aggressive in pursuing any one of those players with the goal of taking a big step forward this season.

After failing to do so, they now find themselves in the midst of another awful season that could see them set a franchise record for losses for the second year in a row. With that in mind, there are players the Spurs passed on who have found themselves making strong contributions elsewhere.

4) Fred VanVleet

The Spurs entered the summer with significant cap space that they could have used to sign a big free agent. While most didn't make sense for the team, one did, and that was Fred VanVleet. VanVleet is an All-Star point guard who was also a free agent before signing with the Houston Rockets.

Thus far, he has been key to their turnaround, averaging 16.5 points, 9.1 assists, and just 1.6 turnovers. His scoring and playmaking have been crucial to Houston being more competitive this season, with them having a real chance to finish above .500 for the first time in four years.

Had San Antonio used some of their cap space on him, they would have been far better off. In fact, while he was expected to sign a massive contract in free agency, he agreed to a much more team-friendly 3-year deal worth $128.5 million, with only the first two years guaranteed.

That helps to ensure that Houston won't have to pay him when he begins to decline, and they could use his big contract to acquire a better player when that time comes. That is precisely what the Spurs could and should have done, but they chose not to for reasons unknown.