Tobias Harris signing forces Mitch Johnson into a difficult Spurs lineup decision

The addition of veteran power forward Tobias Harris could be a crucial one for the San Antonio Spurs, but it also presents a difficult lineup decision.

There is some question as to who should start for the Spurs next season. Julian Champagnie was the Spurs starter for the second half of the season, and San Antonio was clearly much better for it.

His combination of size, three-point shooting, solid defense, and effective rebounding made him the ideal power forward. Despite this, many view him as just a small forward capable of scaling up. On the other hand, Harris is more of a modern power forward, but it's still up in the air whether he will start next season.

Who should start at power forward for the Spurs next season?

Harris's case for starting is fairly straightforward. He was the starting power forward on a 57-win Detroit Pistons team that went to the Eastern semifinals.

He has more than a thousand games of NBA experience and is a prolific 3-point shooter, having hit nearly 1400 career threes. The fact that he is still playing this well this long into his career is a testament to his longevity and skill.

As far as his fit in the potential starting lineup, he is somewhat similar to Harrison Barnes, but he may be a more versatile scorer. He can attack smaller players in the post and take bigger players off the dribble when attacking closeouts.

Harris is also one of the NBA's most accurate mid-range shooters. Defensively, he can guard bigger players, including the likes of Karl-Anthony Towns, although he isn't elite. Nevertheless, between he and Champagnie, Champagnie should start.

The Spurs must continue to start Julian Champagnie

Champagnie has proven himself time and time again to be the ultimate glue guy. In fact, San Antonio clearly plays at their best when he's on the floor. Don't believe me?

During the regular season, San Antonio boasted a +17.6 net rating with him starting at power forward alongside De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell, and Victor Wembanyama. During the playoffs, that lineup was even better, boasting a +22.4 net rating.

San Antonio would be foolish to tinker with that lineup with it already proving to be among the best in the NBA. Better still, with a bounce-back season from Fox and improvement from Castle and Wembanyama, that starting five could be even better.

Harris is definitely good enough to start for the Spurs. However, having Champagnie in the starting five to begin the season could make San Antonio better than last year.

It could also be their path to having home-court advantage in the playoffs. Therefore, Harris should come off the bench, where his scoring can have more of an impact.

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