SUBSCRIBE TO JOHN LUND ON YOU TUBE FOR LIVE SHOWS WEEKDAYS STARTING AT 8 AM PT, SATURDAY’S AT 10 AM, STORY OF THE DAY AND WHEN NEW BREAKS!
Former Warriors superstar and NBA Champion Kevin Durant is the latest potential contending lifeline star to say no go to overtures and a possible story book reunion with Golden State to save Steph Curry’s ship from sinking before the NBA trade deadline on Thursday.
ESPN NBA Insider Shams Charania told host Malik Andrews Durant has no interest in turning back the clock and reuniting with Steph Curry and Draymond Green to chase a title in The Bay Area. Durant 36, who spent three seasons with the Warriors from 2016 to 2019, winning two NBA titles and two Finals MVPs before rupturing his right Achilles in game 5 of the 2019 finals versus Toronto, apparently would rather stay in Phoenix and wait to see if the Suns could improve their equally underachieving star team by Thursday’s deadline. Rumors have spread Jimmy Butler, who also reportedly said no to a trade to Golden State, wants to team with Durant and guard Devin Booker in Phoenix, but no team wants the contract of Suns guard Bradley Beal to make the financial side of the deal work. The former All-Star has not played to his usual standards since arriving in a trade with Washington in 2022. The hard part about moving the 31 year-old is he’s only one of two players in the league (LeBron James is the other), with a full no trade clause, so if Beal doesn’t want to facilitate a trade out of the desert, he can just say no to all other teams.
So where does this latest set back leave the Golden State Warriors just hours ahead of the trade deadline, a cutoff point which will determine once and for all the current and future direction of the team?
These are the choices as I see them less than 24 hours before the NBA trade deadline:
- COMPLETE A TRADE WITH THE NEW LOOK LOS ANGELES LUKA’S FOR OG LEGEND LEBRON JAMES: Los Angeles has said all the right things since acquiring superstar point guard Luka Doncic from the Mavericks for forward Anthony Davis a few days ago. They claim King James and Magic Luka can play together despite both being ball dominant alphas where the ball goes to and through them on the offensive end of the floor, neither is a great pure shooter off the ball and because of LeBron’s age (40), and Luka’s indifference, defense is often optional with these two stars. Not exactly peanut butter and jelly. Truth is, the Lakers made this move with long term in mind. Why keep senior citizen LeBron around when this is the Luka Lakers now and Doncic 25, would be best suited with players his age to grow the Lakers into a long term contending title team. They can contend with James and Doncic together short term, but they can win much more over time with players the same age or similar to their new star who get better with continuity. It’s LA’s last chance to get a haul for James and with the Slovenian’s star power aboard, tinseltown’s finicky fans won’t mind. LeBron isn’t Kobe or Magic, lifelong Lakers who brought them multiple titles. James was a hired gun who won a 2020 bubble kinda championship after being known more for his tenures in Cleveland and Miami. It’s unlikely he is with the Lakers next season. There’s a new sheriff in town.
First the numbers work. You could mess with the players a little back and forth, but both teams accomplish what they want. James teams with his good pals Curry and Green for one last run. Plus throw in Wood and Reddish as cheap depth with expiring contracts after losing four players to the Lakers. Golden State keeps beloved Brandin Podziemski and Trace Jackson-Davis for youth off the bench and still has solid vets Kevon Looney, Kyle Anderson, Buddy Hield and Dennis Schroder off the pine. Gui Santos, Quintin Post and Lindy waters have had moments this season and could help.
STEVE KERR WOULD HAVE TO TUCK THE AGING CURRY AND JAMES INTO BED BY 9 PM EACH NIGHT, AFTER PLAYNG THEM LESS THAN 30 MINUTES IF THEY PLAYED TOGETHER ON WARRIORS
The Lakers get 29 year-old Wiggins who fits the new timeline and is a two-way player who can shoot, slash and help make up for Luka’s lack of defense. Kuminga is 22 and fits the age bracket with upside on both ends, Moody is also 22 and finally gets a regular chance to contribute, which I think he will and GPII makes the salary work, gives the Lakers toughness and grit and isn’t too old for them at 32.
It’s win-win to me and the Warriors finally have their king next to Curry. Even at 40, James is doing things most of the NBA isn’t and gives Warriors boss Joe Lacob the NBA’s highest profile spotlight team for a couple more years, something he loves. Will they win a title? They have a better chance while Curry is still Curry with the hour glass emptying after this massive move. Lacob could live with running the Warriors into the ground at the end of it all knowing he did everything he could to repay the debt he owes Steph, including taking the price of the franchise from the $450 million Lacob and friends bought it for in 2010 to the current valuation over over $9.1 billion. Also, No Curry, no shiny new Chase Center in San Francisco. Lacob owes Curry this one.
- GO RESCUE ZION WILLIAMSON FROM THE NEW ORLEANS PELICANS AND HIRE A NEW TEAM NUTRITIONIST: Zion was calorically challenged before he stepped foot in NOLA as a rookie in 2019, but Po’ Boys, jambalaya, gumbo and beignets washed down by boozy Hurricane’s isn’t kind to the waist line. When he’s on the court, Williamson is a Tasmanian devil. He can bulldoze anyone around the rim, fly up and down the court for Sports Center dunks and score as easily as he takes down red beans and rice. At 24, Williamson could help the Warriors in the now and in Joe Lacob’s later when Curry and Green are long gone. Problem is Williamson, who is listed at 6 foot 6 and 284 pounds, has played in 46% of Pelican’s games (198/410), since being the top pick in the 2019 NBA draft out of Duke. Shaquille O’Neal’s free throws were more reliable (52% lifetime), than Zion showing up on game day in uniform rather than street clothes. I’m clearly no doctor, but I’m thinking 284 pounds on a 6’6 frame is the major issue here. Only Zach Edey (7’4 305) and Jusuf Nurkic (7’0 290), are listed as heavier and both those players have 6-10 inches in height on Williamson to distribute the girth. This has been a national issue since Williamson blew out of his Nike during his lone season as a Blue Devil vs. North Carolina in 2019. With that as the back drop, Williamson still has more upside than anyone currently on the Warriors, including Jonathan Kuminga and is only 24. The freaky athletic flyer, averages nearly 25 points per game in his career, adding seven rebounds per night in only 31 minutes. When he plays, he’s an unstoppable offensive monster with potential to lead the NBA in scoring with double digit rebounds. Much of the speculation in league circles is if Zion were to land with the right organization who could not only get him in peak condition but also show him winning ways, habits, leadership and maturity, he could reach his vast ceiling. It’s a BIG if to keep the theme going, but he might be the only player available on the trade market this year who could bridge the now to help Curry and the later to bring a true number one talent to the Warriors, a scenario Lacob seems to covet so much. It’s worth the risk.
I realize this is a massive chance to take. Wiggins is in for salary purposes, Draymond Green fits as well and might be a better positional fit going the other way, but if this is done to win now more than it is to secure a number one type player later, Green has to stay with Curry for the win now part. Zion at 24, could be that piece later but that is secondary for now. Wiggins is in, Kuminga has to be in for New Orleans to feel they are getting upside for giving up even higher upside. The trade works financially at that point. The third piece would either be Moses Moody, but then the Warriors are giving up two wings and a 3/4 in Kuminga so they likely wouldn’t want to lose that much on the perimeter. It could be Podz, a combo guard who they obviously like or picks. There would be a third element. Also, the Warriors could get a young piece back but the Pelicans have so many injuries right now, there isn’t a healthy piece that makes a ton of sense. The desperate Warriors are one of a few teams set up to help him put the Muffuletta and reach his potential.
- THE USUAL SUSPECTS BRANDON INGRAM, CAM JOHNSON, PAUL GEORGE, LAURI MARKKANEN, JIMMY BUTLER: Butler already said no to the Warriors, but he’s certifiably nuts this season and his winds could change. George and Markkanen were two players connected to the Warriors this offseason. George and the 76ers sit in 11th place in the East and he’s already missed 20 games. At 34, he’s clearly not the player he was and Philly could have some buyers remorse signing him to a $212 million free agent deal in the offseason after the Los Angles Clippers told the Warriors they wouldn’t trade him to their rivals in the Bay Area. I wouldn’t take on that deal for an aging, injured player, Golden State has seen enough of those. Markkanen and the Jazz currently have the worst record in the West and after some early season back issues, the 27 year-old has been his usual solid self. The Warriors would have to take on his new deal for $238M and I don’t see him as a building block type for the future or a huge difference maker in the present vs. what they have. Ingram 27, is in the last year of his deal, averaging 22 points per game and he makes $36 million in the last year of his deal. He’s likely to hit free agency, so he’s a short term rental, plus I don’t see him as a big improvement given the season Andrew Wiggins is having. Wiggins contract would be the first piece to getting a deal done and that’s a non-starter for those talks. Cam Johnson of the Nets is a nice player but he’s not better than Wiggins and his upside is not worth trading Kuminga for. He has two years left on his current deal at $24M and $27M, so unless Brooklyn wants a combination of Kevon Looney and Gary Payton’s contracts, plus Moody or Podzeimski, or maybe a pick, there is no deal to be made.
- KABOOM! BLOW IT ALL UP IN THE OFFSEASON: Jerry Reinsdorf the owner of the Chicago Bulls in 1998, declared before the end of that season it would be the last for the Michael Jordan-Scottie Pippen led dynasty team. Jordan hit an iconic series clinching shot over Bryon Russell in Salt Lake City, the Bulls beat the Jazz in six. I interviewed all the major dignitaries in a fractured Chicago locker room after on that night and poof it was gone. Not every dynasty ends with a title and a ride off into the sunset like a movie or in this case, a last dance.
This is Joe Lacob’s least favorite scenario of those I’ve laid out, but if they don’t get something done in a major way at the deadline Thursday, this may be the most likely one facing the Warriors this offseason. Curry has said on many occasion’s this season after several disappointing losses, he’s not down with hanging out on a mediocre NBA team, which this one is and has been for a few years now. Just like after deep runs and titles, those Warriors dynasty teams deserved the benefit of the doubt in a positive way, this version has earned fringe status. Since their 2022 NBA title, the Warriors are 115-88 (.567) with an average Western Conference finish of 8th place. The last two seasons Golden State has finished 6th and 10th in the conference and are in 10th place this season with a middle of the road 25-24 record. That’s borderline playoff team country or what Curry said he wanted no part of long term. The players are too old (Curry, Green), too young (Kuminga, Moody, Podzeimski, Trayce Jackson-Davis), or just not good enough (the rest), to do anything other than take fans on a roller coaster ride of false hope ups and downs all season. Adding another year to the mix for the old guys while hoping for major jumps from the young guys hasn’t been a winning strategy so far. That leaves the inevitability of gravity in sports, what goes up, must come down. The only aspect a team can control is how far down they fall. It’s admirable and right Joe Lacob’s Warriors have reportedly explored most every option in their pursuit of real help so Curry can at least be put in a position to compete for the and in the playoffs. It’s unfortunate every target has been off the mark for one reason or another. No one said keeping a dynasty afloat was easy.
So it may be time this offseason to do the unthinkable or at least the we really don’t want to do this but our franchise icon wants to win and we owe him and trade Stephen Curry while he still is mostly himself on his end and has major value on the Warriors side of things. It’s an entirely new and detailed piece to start speculating on where, what, when and who would be involved, but we can start here: Curry is not being traded at the deadline this season no matter what. The Warriors would need an entire offseason to bring together the basketball people to go through offers. The marketing people on how to spin this so fans don’t riot at Chase Center. The bean counters who can decipher how to keep all the season ticket holders from canceling the second Shams Charania breaks the news on social media and they have to talk to Curry himself on where he wants to go and how to eventually bring him back as a part owner, executive, President or whatever role he wants to have down the road. He may take a short and strange detour on the road to Mr. All-Time Warrior but this isn’t the end, just the end for now.
The Warriors don’t want to hear it, think about it or face the reality of it, but unless a Hail Mary is completed in the next number of hours, this may be their most likely outcome.