Spurs must solve this massive flaw to contend for the playoffs

As we get closer and closer to the NBA trade deadline, it seems increasingly obvious that San Antonio needs to make a trade. With the Spurs in playoff contention for the first time in years, they should look to make the necessary moves to be able to make the postseason.

That would be a big step in the right direction, with San Antonio having just drafted rising superstar Victor Wembanyama only last season. Making the playoffs with him and getting him and the team's young core postseason experience would be huge. However, they will first have to solve their most pressing issue.

The Spurs must solve their lack of a second option problem to contend

The Spurs' biggest flaw thus far has clearly been a lack of a second option. Devin Vassell was supposed to be that player on this team, but his scoring since joining the starting lineup has tapered off. He is averaging just 15.2 points per game—10 fewer points than Wembanyama—and clanking the majority of his threes of late, shooting just 29.7% from deep over the last 16 games.

To be fair, that technically still makes him a second option. Vassell is second in scoring on the Spurs, but they need a more consistent alternate scoring threat to take pressure off Wembanyama. As of now, that player isn't on the roster, which may force them to make a big trade to get a player who can consistently get buckets.

The best way for them to resolve that issue is via a trade for players such as the New Orleans Pelicans' Brandon Ingram or the Sacramento Kings' De'Aaron Fox. Both players could potentially be had ahead of the trade deadline, and the Spurs should strongly consider making a big move. Ingram may be the most affordable and the most readily available between the stars.

He would make sense given that he is a big wing who is a reliable scorer and an efficient high-volume shooter who can knock down shots from outside and the mid-range. Adding a perennial 20-plus point-per-game scorer to the starting lineup would give the Spurs more offensive firepower without giving up size or sacrificing spacing.

Fox is the better player of the two and would fit a long-term position of need. His ability to attack the paint and also put games on ice with his play in the clutch is definitely intriguing, but he may cost far more to acquire. Either way, the Spurs need a reliable second option, and it is increasingly clear that they don't have that player on their roster at the moment.