When fully healthy, the San Antonio Spurs starting lineup consists of De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell, Harrison Barnes, and Victor Wembanyama. That combination has only played 50 minutes together but has been great in those minutes, posting a net rating of plus-8.9.
The combination of Fox, Castle, and Vassell, however, has a negative net rating in 114 minutes of action. That's not anyone's fault, as all three of those guys have been great in their own rights this season. But with the Fox/Castle/Barnes three-man combo working so well (plus-9.5 net rating) and Dylan Harper looking more like a starting-caliber guard each game, it may be time for an experiment from Mitch Johnson — starting Dylan Harper and moving Vassell to a sixth man role.
This doesn't need to be a permanent change; but the Spurs have been forced to try so many lineup combos already, why not toss the three guard lineup out there to see if it clicks? In theory, each of the guards brings something different to the table. Harrison Barnes still provides floor spacing, and Wemby acts as the defensive anchor.
Devin Vassell could improve Spurs bench shooting
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The Spurs' bench is top 10 in scoring, but bottom 10 in 3-point shooting. Inserting Vassell (who's shooting a career-high 39.7% from deep) into the second unit mix could be doubly beneficial; it would allow the second unit more spacing, and it would allow Dylan Harper to help the starting unit push the pace a little more (the team is currently No. 16 in pace).
Things aren't broken for the Spurs right now, and I don't bring up the idea of switching the starting lineup to "fix" anything. Mitch Johnson has been phenomenal in his first full year as head honcho, and his willingness to make adjustments and tweak things to find the best lineup fits is commendable.
Dylan Harper is obviously going to be a starter in this league for a long time — why not see if he's ready right now alongside the team's two other star guards? Mid-December is the perfect time for experimentation.