Exciting Spurs offseason leaves one burning question remaining for fans

With the excitement of free agency beginning to wear off, fans of the San Antonio Spurs are probably already looking ahead to the season. The team just filled their two open roster spots by bringing back Sandro Mamukelashvili and Charles Bassey, giving them a surprisingly balanced roster that could still use a few tweaks.

The additions of Chris Paul and Harrison Barnes will help San Antonio address their two weakest positions, point guard and small forward, while fourth overall pick Stephon Castle will also join the rotation and possibly push Malaki Branham or Julian Champagnie out of the lineup.

That would give the Spurs more depth, though with Barnes, Keldon Johnson, Castle, and Champagnie all at small forward, it raised questions about whether the team should consider trading Johnson, who may continue to have a diminishing role. With an affordable contract that will pay him $19 million next season, he should be easily tradeable.

His salary is a near-perfect match for Lauri Markkanen of the Utah Jazz or big enough to be paired with another player to make a run at another star such as Brandon Ingram. Be that as it may, does it make sense for the Spurs to make a big move?

Should the Spurs stand pat or make one last trade? 

The Spurs have reportedly made an offer for Markkanen but the Jazz seem to be asking for a massive return for their best player. Barring their asking price being lowered, the Spurs may opt to wait on making a move, especially if the Jazz opt to renegotiate and extend Markkanen.

Doing so would almost double his $18 million salary for 2024–25 and add five years to his contract, pushing it to 2029–30. However, it would make him ineligible to be traded until February 6, 2025, the day of the trade deadline. That could work out in San Antonio's favor since it would give them a chance to see if they were good by that point before deciding whether to go all in for Markkanen or whether to wait until next summer to see what's available.

All in all, the Spurs have improved their roster by bringing in two veterans, thus adding depth. However, with a log jam on the wing, it's reasonable to question whether the team is done making big moves. At the moment, it appears that the Spurs are done making moves until after the start of the season.