Should the Warriors Make a Move for Kevin Durant?
With the implication of the Warriors’ rough start to the season and James Wiseman’s assignment to the G-League, there’s been plenty of talk about a potential trade. Most of these ideas center around Wiseman’s contract, given he makes around $10 million a year, and the team could potentially net some solid role players should they get him involved in talks.
This isn’t the first time this season we’ve heard about a potential Wiseman-involved trade, and given what’s happening on the other side of the country in Brooklyn, it might be time to give a second thought to the reunion of a dynasty:
If you’re the Nets, this is not something you like to see. At age 34, Kevin Durant signed a 4-year extension with the Nets worth roughly $48 and a half million a year, a max contract worthy of a transcendent talent. Durant also requested a trade from the Nets in early summer, and for awhile, it seemed like a deal might materialize. After the Jazz took in major hauls for offloading Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell, however, the asking prices for KD were too high for most fringe contenders to bite on. Realistically, there aren’t teams in the league who could get away with moving so many assets, even for a star of Durant’s calibre.
Well, maybe there’s one.
The Golden State Warriors were engaged in early-stage trade discussions for Durant given their young core, and the fact that generational superstars aren’t available all that often. Allegedly, the package the Nets wanted was centered around Jordan Poole, and if talks were to restart, either him or Draymond Green would have to be included. Poole’s recent extension means he makes $32 million a year. Tack on Kuminga, who makes $6 million, and Wiseman making $10 million, and you’ve got an even match while still keeping the second-most “game ready” young guy the Warriors have in Moses Moody. Given Durant’s under contract for another few seasons, however, they would likely need to tack on some picks to give the Nets to get it done.
So what would the team look like after this trade? The only win-now piece you end up losing is realistically Jordan Poole. This Warriors team may actually end up better than the original KD squads because they’ll be able to retain Andrew Wiggins for no added cost of what they pay now. Move Kevon Looney to the bench, start Green at the 5, and you have a ridiculously-talented starting lineup, with a bench of Donte DiVincenzo, Moses Moody, Kevon Looney, and JaMychal Green. That’s a pretty good starting point for a championship-calibre team. The Nets could include another guy from their side who makes a minimal amount of money to make the roster spots work, as well.
The major downside of a trade like this is obviously, you essentially give up the second timeline. Not only do you move the starting point of the next young core with Wiseman and Kuminga, but you also lose Jordan Poole, who’s only in year 4 and has shown he can contribute to a championship. It will likely require the 2023 and 2025 first round picks which the Dubs still have, with no protections added, as well as some additional draft capital down the line. The upside? You almost guarantee another championship run.
The question is always, however, should the Warriors make this move? It really depends on how the deal might materialize, and how bought-in the team (and importantly, ownership) is to win now and go into a rebuild later. The Warriors currently have a future on their hands where they can stay competitive for a long while, so in order to answer if this trade makes sense for Golden State, you have to answer whether it’s worth more to bring two or three more championships to the city before falling back to the bottom for Lord-knows-how-long, or to remain competitive for an extended period of time and possibly bring a new generation of Bay Area sports heroes into that upper echelon of success.
And while the former might be the highest of peaks, it’s always nice to know there’s plenty of potential for that kind of greatness in the future as well.
(Photo credit: Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)