Predicting Spurs new explosive starting lineup after De'Aaron Fox trade

This roster suddenly looks much different.

Sacramento Kings v Oklahoma City Thunder
Sacramento Kings v Oklahoma City Thunder | Joshua Gateley/GettyImages

The Spurs have paired De'Aaron Fox with Victor Wembanyama in a three-team trade with the Kings and Chicago Bulls, and the NBA is in a world of danger because of it. Wemby already performs feats that drop jaws on a nightly basis. He's doing it as the only real threat on the team, so he gets all the focus from the defense. That will no longer be happening with Fox on the court.

The reports stated that the Kings wanted Stephon Castle in return for De'Aaron Fox, but Brian Wright and the Spurs front office declined to make that happen. Castle has been playing spectacularly, and it would have been foolish to give him up. However, now the Spurs have several starter-level point guards on the roster with Chris Paul still in tow, so the lineups will need to be shaken up.

Spurs new starting lineup should go as follows:

PG: De'Aaron Fox
SG: Stephon Castle
SF: Devin Vassell
PF: Harrison Barnes
C: Victor Wembanyama

Chris Paul came to San Antonio because he wanted to play. As the lead point guard off the bench, he'll still have plenty of opportunity to do that. But he can't start over De'Aaron Fox, and the Spurs need to keep Stephon Castle in the lineup to provide defense on top of the additional ball handling.

The only way to keep CP3 in the starting unit would be to send Castle to the bench, forcing him to play more minutes next to Jeremy Sochan, and those two have not played well together. There just isn't enough shooting on the floor when they're both on the court. With the lineup described above, the Spurs have defense, shooting, good passing, and rim pressure. It's a perfect mix.

Chris Paul will thrive off the bench in a reduced role

Tre Jones has been shipped off to Chicago along with Zach Collins. Now, the Point God can run the bench unit and orchestrate those guys to the tune of more efficient play. He adds shooting to a group that needs it. The second group of guys, led by CP3, will be Julian Champagnie, Keldon Johnson, Jeremy Sochan, and Charles Bassey. That gives the Silver and Black a versatile 10-man rotation.

There's still plenty of time before the February 6 trade deadline, so the front office may not be done yet. But that's hard to predict. This team certainly has other pressing needs, but it would be smart not to go all in right now. More opportunities will reveal themselves down the line in the offseason. Free agency will likely bring us another Spurs move. For now, we can laud our GM for bringing Fox to the city.

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