League owners and general managers around the NBA were getting concerned about the Warriors and their continued spending habits. Warriors owner Joe Lacob became infamous for emptying his pockets so that the Warriors could keep their competitive roster once Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant departed.

As a result — the Warriors are in a peculiar financial situation. Warriors guard Jordan Poole made a name for himself in his third season and Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins proved that he can be a contributing player on a championship-hunting team. Recently — Warriors forward Draymond Green went on his podcast and said he should be deserving of a max contract in his next contract extension — which isn’t until the end of the 2022-23 NBA season. 

With that being said — Lacob is now forced to consider maxing out three of the most important rotational players — and if he committed to that — the Warriors would be the first team in NBA history to exceed $400 M in salary and tax penalties. 

And so the question remains — who really deserves the contract extension and how should the Warriors move forward from this debacle? 

Poole had an outstanding season despite not being named a finalist for the Most Improved Player award and Lacob should consider the longevity of the team. 

Poole demonstrated that he is capable of stepping up when it really mattered. When Warriors superstar Stephen Curry was coming back from injury in the opening round versus the Denver Nuggets — Poole put up an absolute mastery of skill, poise and talent. Poole averaged a little over 21 points per game and 5.4 assists while shooting a scorching 54.8% from the floor and 48.4% from 3-point range and did his best Curry impersonation. 

Luckily for Lacob — Poole is still on his rookie contract —- so an extension for Poole would be around the 25 percent maximum salary. If Poole is eligible for that extension — the Warriors could save some cap space since Poole is still developing. In June, Connor Letourneau of the San Francisco Chronicle reported that Poole’s extension would be worth around four-year, $100 million. Given the fact that New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson recently signed a four-year, $104 million contract, it would be interesting to see how much Lacob is willing to spend on Poole given the market value. 

As for Wiggins — the Warriors are currently taking on his rookie contract extension that he signed while he was still a member of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Wiggins has thrived with the Warriors as the third option — as being the former No. 1 pick proved to be too much of a burden and he wasn’t surrounded with the right pieces in Minnesota. 

Wiggins earned the moniker of “Two-Way Wiggs” for his contributions on both ends of the floor. During the 2022 NBA Finals, Wiggins was tasked with guarding Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum and forced him into a mere mortal 21.5 points while shooting 36.7% and committing 23 turnovers. Wiggins also averaged 18.3 points and 8.8 rebounds in the Finals and had several key moments — especially in Game Five. 

No doubt — Wiggins continued to prove that he will be a key member of the team going forward. Additionally — Wiggins is still relatively young at the age of 27. With the Warriors turning his reputation around and Wiggins having the best year of his career — perhaps Lacob can convince Wiggins to take a team friendly deal since Wiggins already received that big payday earlier in his career. 

As for Green — it’s hard to gauge whether or not Green deserves the max as he so profusely claimed. Green is entering the ladder stages of his career and has already seen some levels of decline in the past. 

However — anyone who pays real attention to the Warriors system knows that Green is an essential piece to their success. There’s no debate that Green is a unique player and will always be the heart and soul of the team.

But — with the team’s current financial situation — Green needs to show his leadership and take a team friendly deal so that Lacob and Warriors General Manager Bob Myers can find the right pieces to keep this team competitive. 

It’s difficult to maintain a consistent winning culture, especially when the owners and GM’s are managing egos and salaries. The San Antonio Spurs were able to achieve that “win now and develop” strategy but Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard famously gave up on the franchise and took his talents elsewhere. 

Hopefully — a team that is built on unselfishness and a team that rarely has egotistical issues can find some solution when it comes to this new financial fiasco. Lacob was already fined $500K for speaking out against the NBA’s luxury tax — and while Lacob has a point — it doesn’t stray away from the crisis that the Warriors are currently in.

(Photo credit: Phelan Ebenhack / Associated Press)