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Om Youngmisuk, ESPN Staff Writer
with the bus over seven minutes left against utah jazz on friday, kyle anderson Line up a wide-open 3-pointer from the top of the key. As soon as Anderson bowled his shot, draymond green He jumped from his seat on the bench and began jumping in anticipation.
Green, Stephen Curry And as soon as Anderson’s shot bounced, the Warriors bench erupted in celebration.
On the other side of the floor, lauri markkanen Just seconds later a wide-open 3 was launched from the wing that was seen bouncing off the rim during a dreadful 4-for-17 shooting night.
If Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. had gotten his way in trade talks with Utah, Markkanen might have been celebrating with the Warriors, who were en route to a 41-point win on the road at the Delta Center. Instead, Markkanen, with his hands on his hips and pursed lips, could only watch in frustration.
Dunleavy tried to find Curry and Green some championship reinforcements in the offseason by talking with the Jazz about Markkanen and LA Clippers About this paul georgeThe Warriors would ideally have liked to get both, but it would have been a long shot as both the Clippers and Jazz wanted their share of the assets back.
Dunleavy was unwilling to give up Golden State’s young prospects and a star pick unless it was a deal for a superstar talent that would immediately put the Warriors on the verge of a fifth title in 11 seasons.
George ultimately opted out of his contract and signed Four years, $212 million with maximum deal philadelphia 76ers In free agency. And Markkanen signed on his behalf Five years, $238 million Re-negotiated an extension with the Jazz, waiting to sign it on the day that made him ineligible to be traded this season.
“Well, that could have been garbage,” Green told ESPN earlier this month. “Markkanen coming here, we don’t know. We’ve never seen it. So there was no idea about what could have happened because we don’t know what it looks like.”
Green praised Dunleavy for being patient and not ceding the farm to George or Markkanen. He and Curry have said that they are excited to see what they can do with this new cast, currently sitting at 2-1 with a 12-man rotation.
That depth will be tested Tuesday when the Warriors take on New Orleans Pelicans (10 p.m. ET, TNT) without Curry (left ankle peroneal strain) and D’Anthony Melton (back), who both are out for at least the next two games,
“We’ve added really good players,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr told ESPN earlier this month. “We absolutely didn’t do that and risk our future at a time when it really didn’t make sense to do that. It only makes sense to do that when you’ve got a chance to go after a franchise-changing player. When you’re winning a championship.” Be on top of.”
Through three games, buddy heald Is seen as someone who can help fill the void left behind by the perimeter clay thompsonThe Warriors like Melton’s two-way skill set and Anderson’s smarts. And he believes those vets can connect with young players Jonathan Kuminga, Brandin Pod Zimiya And moses moodyand are complemented by curries, greens and Andrew Wiggins,
“As long as we’re on the floor, we’ve got a chance,” Green said of himself and Curry. “Once you get to the playoffs, you see (opposing) players playing every day and forgetting about playing basketball. You see that too often.
“We just need a chance.”
delayed In the first quarter of the Warriors’ preseason opener against the Clippers in Hawaii, Podziemski suddenly found the ball with a turnover and a fast break opportunity.
The second-year Warriors guard was still a few steps away from the giant “H” logo at midcourt of the University of Hawaii’s Stan Sheriff Center when he brought the ball back with two hands above and behind his head and delivered a wicked bounce pass over the middle. . Two Clippers defenders for one streaking gary payton ii For fast breaking stingers.
This might just be a preseason highlight. But the play offered a glimpse of why the Warriors aren’t the only team interested in the versatile 6-foot-4 guard, drafted with the 19th pick out of Santa Clara last year.
The Jazz and Warriors discussed Markkanen several times, but Golden State’s offers did not include Podziemski and were light on draft capital, both of which were deal breakers for the Jazz. Sources tell ESPN’s Tim McMahon,
Sliding the 7-foot Markkanen into Kerr’s offense, who averaged 23.2 points and 8.2 rebounds while shooting 39.9% from 3 last season and also scored 35 points in the Jazz’s season opener, is a good fit in theory. As it seemed. But the reality was that the cost was too high for Golden State.
“Most people who negotiate with Danny Ainge lose out,” Green told ESPN about the Jazz CEO. “So at what cost?”
Like the Clippers and other big-spending luxury tax-paying teams, the Warriors also had to prepare for the more punitive CBA rules and act accordingly. In a worst-case scenario, the second apron would potentially give teams access to the $5 million taxpayer midlevel exception, the ability to collect salary in trades and even freeze first-round picks for seven years and first-round picks. Will eventually move a first round pick. ,
“The most challenging part is we’ve got a great owner and the willingness to spend is always there,” Dunleavy told ESPN earlier this month. “So we’ll figure out the CBA stuff. But it’s really just the timeline. You can’t go back years. You can’t make people younger. And so taking steps to balance it out and enable us to be really good And now it is challenging to reach the top.”
League sources told ESPN that the second apron was one of several reasons why trade talks for George never really came to fruition.
Green said on his “Draymond Green Show” podcast earlier this summer that George wanted to join the Warriors, which would require the All-Star guard to sit out the final year of his $48.7 million deal and then Will be dealt with in a trade. , But Green said the Clippers were not interested in playing with the Warriors.
“You can go into free agency, (George) will decide if he wants to be in it or not,” Curry told reporters before the start of camp. “Well, we should definitely have that meeting and I was part of that process.”
To Green’s surprise, because of the second apron, the Clippers had no interest in taking anything back to avoid losing George for nothing. Sending George to the Warriors to bring in players like Moody, an expiring contract and some draft capital would also mean taking on a hefty contract like Wiggins, who has three years and $85 million left on four years, $109 million. Deal of. According to team sources, this could prevent the Clippers from going after another young star in the future.
League sources also told ESPN that Kuminga’s name never seriously came up in any significant talks between the Clippers and Warriors.
If a deal for a star is presented before the deadline, the Warriors are expected to be in the mix. They have a future first-round pick and a swap to deal with, with only a 2030 top-20-protected first-round pick owed to Washington. Jordan Poole deal. And they have Kuminga, Podziemski and Moody, as well as the expiring contracts of Melton, Payton and. kevon looneyamong others.
“It’s time to do it,” Kerr told ESPN. “We’re seeing teams around the league do that. But for us right now, unless it’s one of these franchise-changing superstar players, imagine how reckless it could be. And Mike understands that and he It’s been handled perfectly.”
Meanwhile, the Warriors still have Curry, who signed a one-year, $62.6 million extension with the Warriors in late August and later reiterated his desire to remain a Warrior for the rest of his life. While Curry has dealt with left ankle injuries before, he told Kerr on Sunday night that this is the latest injury.mild or moderateHe is scheduled to be reevaluated on Friday.
And they have Green, who at 34 is still adept with his passing and defense.
“Can’t panic,” Green told ESPN. “Panicism in this league and you win 25 games five years in a row.”
idea of George in a Warriors uniform is bothering Ty Lue so much that the Clippers coach interrupts a question about it with, “Uh, uh.”
“I didn’t want to face him, no,” Lue said Sunday.
“You pair him (defensively) with Kuminga and Drummond, I wouldn’t like to see that happen. I’m glad it didn’t happen.”
Lew’s fears never came true. Instead of finding another star, the Warriors added several players who made it Deepest roster of the Kerr eraAs well as renowned assistant coaches Terry Stotts and Jerry Stackhouse.
Kerr has started Curry, Wiggins, Kuminga, Green and Tracy Jackson-Davis In the first three matches. Hield, Podziemski, Melton, Looney, Moody, Payton and Anderson came off the bench. No player averages more than 26.3 minutes per night, and all 12 rotation players average at least 12 minutes — although those numbers are skewed by a pair of blowouts to start the season. .
Facing their first competitive game of the season against the defensive-minded Clippers, Kerr played Anderson just four minutes and Green sat the final eight minutes, while Looney helped lead a comeback that allowed the Warriors to blow a 13-point lead. Reduced to one.
Kerr will have to replace Curry’s 18.3 points, 40.7% 3-point shooting, 6.7 assists and 5.3 rebounds per game by committee as his ankle heals.
Wiggins, who is listed as questionable for Tuesday’s game due to a lower back strain, leads the team in scoring with 19.7 points per game, while also being active on the glass with 6.7 rebounds per game. Live. Hield struggled in his debut as a Warrior, hitting 3 of 14 shots against the Clippers, but is averaging 19 points per game so far. Podziemski is looking to increase minutes in these next few games.
After the loss to the Clippers, Kerr said, “Someone messaged me, ‘Hey, 12 guys. This is a real democracy.’ “I said, as soon as we lose, it will be communism. So it’s true. Results dictate decisions, and that’s the business we’re in. So I have to do what I think is best for our team, “And generally speaking, we have to be prepared for changes throughout the year.”
Dunleavy also would be willing to make adjustments. He has been in constant contact with Curry and Green and says they are on the same page regarding how they want to compete, but also want to remain patient and attack the trade market when the time and price is right. Are.
“The simple thing is we’re knocking on a lot of houses to try to buy them,” Dunleavy said. “And if there are some sellers, if there aren’t some sellers, we’ll keep doing that. We’ll find something right.”
So far, Green and Curry like the moves Dunleavy made — and the ones he didn’t.
“In 2022, everyone thought the same thing,” Green said. “Nobody saw us as a championship contender before that year. We didn’t make any moves at the deadline and we won it.”