The Warriors should — and almost certainly will — be among the suitors for Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, but if they’re unable to pull off a deal, it doesn’t mean the pursuit was a failure, argues Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area.
The possibility of trading for Antetokounmpo now carries much more risk than it would’ve several years ago, when the team first viewed the two-time MVP as its “holy grail,” Poole writes. The Warriors’ best current offer — centered around draft picks but not much in the way of young players — could also theoretically be topped by several rival teams, Poole observes.
Still, Poole thinks it’s the right call to trade for the 31-year-old star, assuming he’s open to the idea and Golden State can convince Milwaukee’s front office to get on board. He just doesn’t view that outcome as likely.
Here’s more on the Warriors:
- Assistant general manager Larry Harris expressed optimism before the draft lottery that the Warriors would select a prospect they like if they stayed at the 11th pick, which would up happening, Poole writes in another story. “I’ve heard the noise,” Harris said when asked about the top-four prospects being in their own tier. “Certainly, there’s four players that everybody seems to talk about when I look at all the mock drafts and everything. But the way we look at it is we really believe it’s beyond 11. But up to 11, we feel really, really, really good about whatever player lands in our lap.”
- Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area lists five “very different” prospects the Warriors could target at No. 11, including Michigan’s Yaxel Lendeborg and his college teammate Aday Mara. Johnson also weighs the pros and cons of each prospect, particularly from Golden State’s perspective.
- Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic isn’t surprised that Steve Kerr signed a two-year deal to stay the Warriors’ head coach and views Kerr as the fitting person to guide the rest of Stephen Curry‘s career. While he acknowledges Kerr will have to evolve his way of thinking in some respects, Thompson also believes Kerr has earned an enormous amount of respect and trust over the course of his long career and is definitely the right coach if the Warriors end up acquiring another star player.
Oh boy.
You sound 100 times more excited about a GA to GSW trade than Monte. Sounds like you and Davey are ready to party. Sorry, I’m not available that night. I have to wash my hair.
Larry Harris and his crew must have eye fatigue. He says that he and his crew watched over a 1,000 games. They must be getting serious about college scouting. In his tenure, they have gone from under 10 people involved in the process to over 30.