Projecting the San Antonio Spurs' Starting Lineup for 2019-2020

We can't put our finger on the reason, but the San Antonio Spurs have become an afterthought it what is now a wide open Western Conference.

They took the No. 2 seed Nuggets to seven games in the opening round of the playoffs. Now, a flurry of underrated offseason moves currently presents head coach Gregg Popovich with one of the deepest rosters in the league and they'll look to improve upon their seventh-place finish from last season. Keep in mind they were 14 games over .500. The West was just that good.

Let's delve into how Popovich could line up the Spurs to open the 2019-2020 campaign when play resumes in October.

1. Point Guard: Dejounte Murray

You're playing yourself if you don't think the University of Washington product fits in perfectly with Popovich's system. Murray's elite ability to collapse defenses will further complement the rest of San Antonio's starting five that is filled with scorers. He is, however, coming off a torn ACL but is expected to be ready to go when the season starts. Expect a breakout year from the 22-year-old.

2. Shooting Guard: DeMar DeRozan

Heading into the offseason, DeRozan's future with the Spurs was very much up in the air as there were several rumors connecting his name in potential trade packages. Well, the dust as settled and it appears that DeMar will don the black and silver threads for another season. The four-time All-Star will look to build off of his superb 2018-2019 season where he averaged 21.2 points, 6.0 rebounds and 6.2 assists.

3. Small Forward: Rudy Gay

The Great Roudini absolutely improved in his second season with San Antonio and will look to do so again in 2019-2020. He averaged a shade under 14 points per game and enjoyed the best shooting numbers of his career: 50.4% overall from the floor and an extraordinary 40.2% from three. In sum, Gay deserves the nod over the newly-acquired DeMarre Carroll.

4. Power Forward: Marcus Morris

Morris started just 53 of the 75 games he appeared in for the Celtics last season, though most Boston fans would argue that his production warranted him a place in the starving five. He averaged 13.9 points and 6.1 rebounds while proving extremely reliable on the defensive end. If the former Jayhawk's game doesn't scream Gregg Popovich, we don't know whose will.

5. Center: LaMarcus Aldridge

LMA might be a seven-time All-Star and he might have been named to five All-NBA teams, but he still feels like one of basketball's most underrated players. Aldridge could average 20 points and 10 rebounds in his sleep and those were essentially the numbers he posted last season. He'll round out a starting five that, top to bottom, could compete with anybody in the Association.