Spurs’ offseason upgrade priorities are obvious after turbulent season

The Spurs' season was supposed to be so much more than what it ended up being. The excitement in the fan base was high coming off Victor Wembanyama's rookie season. He dominated defensively and showcased an offensive bag that shows no limit to how high his ceiling is. It led him to a unanimous Rookie of the Year award.

The summer rolled around, and San Antonio showed they were paying attention to the need for a veteran presence and added Harrison Barnes and Chris Paul. They drafted Stephon Castle. Devin Vassell was poised for a breakout season, and the greatest coach of all time was at the helm of a team ready to challenge for a playoff spot. But it all fell apart.

Now that we've reached the next offseason, the chaos is in the rearview. (There's no need to recount everything that happened. We were all there.) Optimism can reign again as we look at the roster, understanding that change is on the horizon. This is the summer analysts have pointed to as the crossroads for San Antonio all along, and now they can get to work confronting their flaws more directly.

3. Backup point guard

The Spurs need someone to run the second unit, but it's not their most pressing issue. Chris Paul hasn't made a decision about retirement, and if he does come back for another year, there's no way to know if he'd be willing to come off San Antonio's bench. If he moves on, which I expect him to do, the team will still be okay.

If Stephon Castle is one of the first off the floor, he can come back in to share ball handling duties with Blake Wesley. De'Aaron Fox recently expressed a lot of confidence in Wesley on social media. We know how much of a hard worker he is, so if he comes back with an improved shot and understanding of the game under Fox's tutelage, the Spurs will be in great shape.

2. Backup big man

Wembanyama is going to play a lot of minutes no matter who his backup is, but that doesn't mean there can't be a reasonable floor the Spurs are comfortable with if his tag team partner is adequate. Fortunately, there are a lot of options to choose from this summer.

That doesn't necessarily lessen the importance that they address this position, but it does mean that Brian Wright doesn't need to pour the most resources into this problem to find a solution. There will be a bunch of interesting options in the middle of and late in the draft, free agency will have great options, and there are always teams willing to make deals if the price is right.

1. Shooting

There's just no substitute for the benefit that shooting brings to a team. Players need space to operate, and if the defense doesn't respect your shooters, they won't give the offense space to do anything in the paint. Every bucket becomes much more difficult to convert because you have to work harder to get a good look.

The Boston Celtics won the NBA Championship by shooting an ungodly number of threes. While not everyone will need to shoot 60 of those a game, you'll still need to convert a high number. It's going to be Wembanyama's third year in the league, and as a top 10 player, as a high-level competitor, he's ready to start competing with the big dogs. He'll need the right personnel around him to do that.

San Antonio's first order of business should be adding shooting to this roster. Everything else is secondary. They have the resources to take care of several areas of need, but they don't have to rush to address everything. This team is closer than you think. A few moves in the right direction, and they'll be in the postseason without needing to go through the Play-In Tournament.