Spurs Offseason: What's Going On With San Antonio's Roster; What Possible Scenarios Exist?

The San Antonio Spurs are continuing to trek toward contention, but remain one of the league's youngest squads — an indication of their patient approach. That isn't a negative thing, but it can be confusing, so here's what you need to know.

Mar 27, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Julian Champagnie (30) reacts to a play against the Utah Jazz during the second quarter at Delta Center. / Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

The San Antonio Spurs' roster looks slightly different now than it did at the end of last season.

Part of that is obvious. Two more players — and one distantly waiting — were drafted to join the Silver & Black at the end of June and a few offseason additions have been made to help surround Victor Wembanyama with a solid group of players.

The Spurs are continuing to trek toward contention, but remain one of the league's youngest squads. That doesn't mean they can't find the success they're looking for, but it does mean that Spurs general manager Brian Wright and company are taking a more patient approach than other contention-ready teams across the league.

And as it goes, patient can sometimes mean confusing.

READ MORE: Brian Wright Says Team Got 'Fair Value' For No. 8 Pick

That being said, here are the major things you need to know about the state of the Spurs' roster, including a few possible scenarios and whereabouts of former players lost in translation:

Who Are the Mainstay 15?

As it stands, San Antonio has the following players under guaranteed contracts for next season:

• Victor Wembanyama
• Devin Vassell
• Jeremy Sochan
• Keldon Johnson
• Chris Paul
• Zach Collins
• Tre Jones
• Harrison Barnes
• Blake Wesley
• Malaki Branham
• Sidy Cissoko
• Sandro Mamukelashvili
• Charles Bassey
• Stephon Castle

Julian Champagnie has a deal for next season, but it doesn't become fully guaranteed until Aug. 1. At that point, he'll join the list above and to this point, all signs point toward that being the case. Recently, the Spurs inked both Mamukelashvili and Bassey to veteran minimums, so once Champagnie's contract locks in, all 15 main roster spots will be filled.

Every player within that group will not spend time in Austin unless specifically appointed there because of injury or happenstance. They are the full-time Spurs.

What About 2-Way Deals?

This is the part of the roster that San Antonio still has to figure out.

Last season, the players signed to two-ways deals shifted. Dominick Barlow was one of them from the jump — a deal that was eventually converted to a standard deal for the remainder of the season in March — as was Sir'Jabari Rice, but midway through, players like David Duke Jr., Raiquan Gray and Jamaree Bouyea emerged to fill those spots.

READ MORE: How Jamaree Bouyea Continues to Prove Worth in Summer League

Bouyea has impressed during Summer League so far, which bodes well for the Spurs, who inked him to a two-year two-way deal, meaning he already has one of the three spots available for San Antonio.

The other two, however, are still up for grabs.

Gray was moved as collateral in the DeMar DeRozan trade that landed Harrison Barnes in San Antonio and was promptly waived by the Chicago Bulls, so he's out of the running, but Duke Jr. has stuck around for Summer League under Kenny Trevino and could be a candidate to sign again next season.

Harrison Ingram is perhaps the most likely candidate to receive one of the two remaining spots. He was drafted by San Antonio in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft and has proven to be a worthy shooter the way he was for the North Carolina Tar Heels, so naturally, the Spurs will want to develop him.

Jul 13, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Harrison Ingram (55) dribbles around Portland Trail Blazers guard Rayan Rupert (21) during the first quarter at Thomas & Mack Center. / Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

If that is the case, then Bouyea and Ingram will split time between Austin and San Antonio with whoever else makes a case strong enough to warrant a two-way deal.

That's yet to be seen, though.

What Happened to Cedi Osman, Dominick Barlow?

Barlow is an interesting case.

Toward the end of last season, the big man was rewarded with a standard NBA contract to allow him to be active for every game of the last month. Two-way players have a maximum of 50 games to play alongside the mainstay roster, so by upgrading his deal, Barlow was able to get real minutes and continue his development toward what he hoped would be a more permanent deal, but that didn't happen.

The Spurs failed to tender his qualifying offer, which meant he entered unrestricted free agency. He became eligible to sign with any team for any amount — something he's yet to do — which didn't eliminate the Spurs from simply re-negotiating another deal, but they opted to go with Mamukelashvili instead.

As a result, Barlow walked. He averaged just 4.2 points and 13.6 minutes in San Antonio.

READ MORE: What Do Spurs' Qualifying Offers Mean?

Cedi Osman, on the other hand, was much simpler. He was acquired last offseason during a move similar to the one that landed the Spurs Barnes. Max Strus was sent from the Miami Heat to the Cleveland Cavaliers and San Antonio got involved to aqcuire the Turkish forward along with Lamar Stevens, who was waived before the season began.

Osman had just one year on his contract when he arrived in San Antonio, and with already six seasons in the league with the Cavaliers, he was ineligible for a qualifying offer. The result?

He went straight to unrestricted free agency, and wasn't brought back. So, barring any drastic changes of heart from the Spurs, he'll likely be suiting up for another team, if any, next year.

I thought for maybe a second that Cedi could be a player the #Spurs could begin to rely on as this season goes on.

He still might be, but Popovich quickly shut down those thoughts.

“We’re not going to use him like Paul George.”

Here’s a video: pic.twitter.com/fq52AY1djS

— Matt Guzman (@mattgzman) November 21, 2023

Could Further Changes Be Made?

Yes. The trade market is still very much open, meaning the Spurs could try and make another splash if they chose to do so for a veteran.

Lauri Markkanen has been mentioned multiple times in rumors surrounding San Antonio, but no beneficial conversations have been had on that front, and given the haul that Danny Ainge seems to want for the Finnish 7-footer, that's likely to remain the case.

READ MORE: Would Spurs Go In On Lauri Markkanen Deal With Jazz?

Moving away from the trade market, there is still an interesting tidbit of the Spurs' current salary situation that could come into play in the back half of the offseason. San Antonio sits just over $5 million above the salary cap, but is below the luxury tax threshold, meaning its full room mid-level exception — worth about $8 million — is still available.

The Spurs could use that contract to bring in a player still on the market with more experience than their current roster, but also not quite to the point of accepting veteran minimums. Players like former Spur Lonnie Walker IV, Isaac Okoro, Talen Horton-Tucker and even Tyus Jones sit among this pool of players that will be searching for new homes next season.

Do the Spurs want any of them? It is unclear.

If they do, they'd be able to offer them up to a two-year deal worth that $8 million in Year 1 and a little more, taking into account the five percent raise, in the second year, but there comes a caveat. In order to do that, they'd need to waive a currently-rostered player.

While there are players who aren't being payed royally and are still young, San Antonio hasn't made any indications that it's eager to do so with any of them.

If a free agent becomes a big target, then that might become more clear, but for now, it remains a "could happen" more than a likely scenario. It is something the front office will consider, however.

As the saying goes: Leave no stone unturned.