Spurs have painfully obvious Harrison Barnes question they must answer

Entering his second season with the San Antonio Spurs, Harrison Barnes could settle into his role as a starter. Considering he was salary dumped on the Spurs by the Sacramento Kings, he turned out to be an unexpected bright spot.

He proved to be a stellar fit next to star Victor Wembanyama, and every lineup that featured the two playing alongside one another put opposing teams to shame.

Obviously, Wembanyama deserves most of the credit, but Barnes' sharpshooting, drilling 43.3% of his threes, helped Wembanyama thrive.

Given the Spurs' desperate need for spacing, it makes plenty of sense for him to continue to start. Presumably alongside De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, and Devin Vassell. Even so, is Barnes starting really sustainable?

What could put Harrison Barnes on the bench?

Barnes starting comes at the expense of Jeremy Sochan, who was previously in that role before being demoted to the second unit. If Sochan's offseason videos showing him effortlessly drilling threes translate to actual games, then that's a game changer.

While Barnes isn't a good defender, San Antonio was more than good defensively when he and Wembanyama were paired up. After all, it's harder to attack a power forward of his size compared to, say, a smallish guard, especially with him having Wembanyama backing him up.

Still, Sochan developing into a decent shooter who can hopefully shoot around 36% from deep on four-plus attempts per game would likely force Barnes to the bench. Sochan is obviously the better defender of the two, with him being one of the best iso-defenders in the NBA and able to guard at least four positions.

Jeremy Sochan could potentially replace Harrison Barnes

Him having a semblance of a jump shot suddenly makes him passable on offense and trending towards being average on that end of the floor. If not Sochan, then Luke Kornet might be the next likely option to take Barnes' place in the starting lineup.

If the Spurs experiment with a Wembanyama and Kornet starting lineup and they play well together, then Mitch Johnson could potentially go with a bigger starting lineup. Wembanyama would technically be the four in that scenario, effectively replacing Barnes, though Kornet would be the new addition to the lineup.

Barring Sochan or Kornet replacing Barnes, however, the Spurs could simply roll with him. After next season, it's unclear who will start in Barnes' place. If he is able to replicate his success from last season, then signing an extension seems possible.

But, for the Spurs' long-term success, the hope is that Sochan improves enough to push Barnes for the starting spot next season.