As the Golden State Warriors dynasty materialized over the past five years, a particularly fortuitous trend became evident – or, for every other team, particularly frustrating: even when the Warriors lose, they win. It started with Stephen Curry’s right ankle which seemed to roll every time he moved. At the time, it seemed like a terrible luck, a discouraged franchise that watched the career of its next big hope potentially end before he had a chance to really start.
Instead, he ended up offering the Warriors the opportunity to sign Curry for the affordable price of $ 44 million over four years, something that would never have been possible without the injury-prone label hanging over him. With an MVP-caliber superstar on a roleplaying contract, the Warriors were able to afford a guy named Kevin Durant – who, incidentally, said he would never pick the Warriors as a free agent if they defeated the Cavs in the finals 2016.
Again, even when the Warriors lost, they won.
It happened again on Thursday night, when Golden State won second overall pick in the 2020 lottery by virtue of losing the most games of any league team in the last season. Durant defected to Brooklyn. Curry broke his hand. Klay Thompson blew his ACL. These are terrible things, yet all it really meant was for the Warriors to get some rest in the middle of a pandemic and come out the other side with only the fifth pick of the top two in franchise history as compensation for theirs. ” suffering”. . ”
Now, what they do with that pick becomes the dilemma, and again it’s an enviable “problem” to have: keep it or trade it? Several league sources who spoke to CBS Sports believe the Warriors will turn every stone in an effort to prepare a trade for a player ready to help them compete for short-term titles, as they rightly believe they still have a league core in place. with Curry, Thompson and Draymond Green ready to return healthy and motivated.
This does not mean that such a player will be available, or that this year’s pick in what is considered a weak draft will have the league-wide value that a typical no. 2 overall would have. Even if the Warriors identify an available player who fits their wish list, and even if the team that currently owns the rights to that player wants to negotiate for a choice between the top two, the only player the Warriors have, al Outside of their big three, who makes enough money to run the finances of such a deal is Andrew Wiggins, and he’s not exactly a premium asset. In fact, most teams see it as negative.
There are ways the Warriors can be creative with their $ 17 million commercial exception. Perhaps a third or even fourth team could be involved to better satisfy all parties. But much needs to come together for the Warriors to address this choice. And that doesn’t even take into account the possibility that pick trading could be a mistake.
Yes, this is considered a weak draft class from a depth standpoint, and no, there is no prospect to miss like LeBron James or Anthony Davis at the top. Most people believe the top three guys are, in no particular order, Anthony Edwards, James Wiseman, and LaMelo Ball, and a league scout who spoke to CBS Sports said he believes any of those guys could fail. ‘NBA as easily as they could be successful. But the Warriors have no plans to fish at this level again for long, and if they want to extend their run beyond the Curry-Thompson-Green era, this may be their best chance to secure their next key player.
Think Spurs. They won a title in 1999 with Tim Duncan and David Robinson. Then they called Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker and won three more. Then, as Duncan got older, they enlisted Kawhi Leonard and won another. The Spurs recently missed the playoffs for the first time in 22 seasons, a period during which they won five championships, and that kind of run only happens if you keep filling your talent pool.
It is not an easy choice. There are many factors at play, many completely beyond the control of the Warriors. But you can bet they’re out there kicking tires. They said they didn’t intend to trade D’Angelo Russell, then they traded him. Now they said they didn’t bring Wiggins with the intention of sending him back, but that’s exactly what they will do if the right opportunity arises. For GM Bob Myers, it really is a question.
Do we prioritize the backend of one dynasty or the potential start of the next?
