Spurs' championship core just became crystal clear after offseason shakeup

The San Antonio Spurs will soon have to make tough choices after adding two more lottery picks to their roster and seeing them play in Summer League. The Spurs have a bunch of recent draft picks, and they will have to figure out which players fit their long-term plan and which don't.

With the Spurs virtually never trading their own first-round picks, it was inevitable that there would be positional overlap between recent draft selections. Take, for instance, a point guard.

The Spurs took Blake Wesley and Malaki Branham three years ago but drafted Dylan Harper this year. Of course, no one would pass up on Harper to spare their feelings, and the Spurs traded both Wesley and Branham soon after, but the same can be said for Keldon Johnson and Carter Bryant. That will soon lead to some tough decisions.

The Spurs will have to part with a part of their young core to thrive

The Spurs have long needed a true small forward, and while Johnson is certainly strong enough and has even scaled up and played plenty of power forward, he isn't what the team needs at this point. Bryant is 6'8 in shoes and has the length, athleticism, and defensive ability to be a prototypical 3-and-D wing.

Especially with his stellar Summer League showing. If everything goes right, Bryant should soon overtake Johnson.

Even if it takes a couple of seasons for Bryant to develop, Johnson may already be obsolete thanks to Julian Champagnie. Champagnie is several inches taller, is a far better shooter, and is a better defensive player, while making $33 million less over the next two seasons than Johnson.

Considering that Champagnie is just one of four returning rotation players who can shoot, his spot in the lineup should be solidified. Assuming that the Spurs start and play De'Aaron Fox, Devin Vassell, Stephon Castle, Harrison Barnes, and Victor Wembanyama, there aren't many minutes available on the perimeter.

Harper will likely play around 15 minutes per game behind Fox and eat up minutes at backup shooting guard. That should put him around 25 minutes, and if Castle plays at least 30 minutes per game, that leaves only spot minutes for Johnson. In that case, Johnson may see his minutes dramatically cut.

Devin Vassell and Keldon Johnson may be the next Spurs moved

Vassell probably isn't safe either. If the Spurs have a shot at landing Giannis Antetokounmpo, it's a solid bet that he'd be in the deal. His contract has around $108 million remaining and is suspect at the moment, but his deal doesn't appear to be toxic just yet.

That's great for San Antonio, which could offload him before it does, for one of the best players in the NBA with his $27 million average salary over the next four years, helping to soften the blow of taking on Giannis' max contract. Even if the Spurs don't make a significant move, Vassell's future with the team appears uncertain at best.

He just isn't the player we all expected. When he got drafted and during his first couple of seasons, he could reliably defend and knock down threes while hinting at more shot creation. The shot-making has been mostly explored, and fans probably don't like what they've seen.

He is a tough shot maker, which can be a gift and a curse, and spoiler alert, it's a curse for Vassell. He can seemingly knock down a fadeaway three while falling out of bounds with one second left on the shot clock and a hand in his face, but basketball gods forbid he hit an open three.

Devin Vassell might stick, but Keldon Johnson might not

If he can revert to being a lower-volume offensive player and find his roots defensively, then he could help the Spurs next season. In 2023-24, he posted a terrific 19.5 points while shooting 54.4% on 2-pointers and 37.2% on 6.6 3-point attempts per game.

His efficiency was terrific that year, averaging nearly 20 points on 15.5 shots. He will probably have to take fewer shots because of the presence of Wembanyama, Castle, and Fox.

But if he can shoot like he did in 2022-23, drilling 38.7% on 7.0 3-point attempts, and shoot at least 51% from two like he's done the last two seasons, he'd be a perfect third or fourth option while averaging around 16-17 points.

That would be helpful since his shooting would be huge for the Spurs, helping Barnes space the floor around Wembanyama. It would also keep his value relatively high, just in case the Spurs still have to move him later.

Johnson would need to play like he did during the second half of last season, when he averaged 14.8 points in 25 minutes per game. But that starts with him improving as a shooter, and it's doubtful that he can.

Therefore, going forward, the Spurs' young core should include Wembanyama, Castle, Harper, Bryant, and Jeremy Sochan, with Fox already being an established star.

Ultimately, with the Spurs' influx of more young talent, older former Spurs draft picks such as Johnson and Vassell may not have a future with the team. Things can change, and hopefully they will, but they will have to prove it next season.