What's Next For The Warriors?

The Warriors are in a tough spot this offseason losing one of the best players in their franchise's history, Klay Thompson, to the reigning Western Conference Champion Dallas Mavericks. 

With that extra cap space freed up from Thompson’s departure, the Warriors have added three excellent role players. De'Anthony Melton, Kyle Anderson, and most importantly, Buddy Hield. This gives Golden State many options not only on the bench, but potentially in the starting lineup as well. 

The most important acquisition out of three is veteran sharpshooter Buddy Hield. Hield has played for four teams (not including Golden State) in his eight year NBA career. The only person that has made more threes in the 2020’s than Steph Curry, Buddy Hield. He will fit perfectly in this Steve Kerr system next to Curry. 

The toughest thing Warriors General Manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. will have to decide is whether he wants to win now or build for the future. With All-Star forward Lauri Markkanen being on the trade block, it’s almost too good of a player for Dunleavy not to go after. But is he willing to give away his future?

I doubt they are willing to give away last year's first round pick and first team all-rookie selection Brandon Podziemski. In an interview during the Warriors summer league against the Cavaliers, Warriors owner Joe Lacob said, “We’re really excited. We think we have a future All-Star. We really do,” when talking about Podziemski. This means Dunleavy will probably offer a package of Jonathon Kuminga, Andrew Wiggins, and multiple first round picks, if Utah will even accept that. 

According to Adrian Wojnarowski, Utah Jazz general manager will hold on to Markkanen until the “perfect package” comes along. Many believe Markkanen is the perfect fit next to Steph Curry and Draymond Green.

Markkanen, who won the Most Improved Player Award in 2023, and was an All-Star that same year, has averaged 24.4 points per game in his two seasons in Utah. Markkanen has flourished as the number one option in Utah, becoming a well known star in the NBA. This type of player is exactly what the Warriors need if they want to be contending again, like they did in 2022. The Warriors need to make an aggressive move like this, especially after missing the playoffs this past season. But it could cost them playoff appearances five years from now. 

We don’t know how much longer Steph Curry’s prime is, luckily, he’s still in his prime right now, and the Warriors need to take advantage of that as much as they can. Markkanen gives you everything you want as a player next to Curry. He stands at seven feet tall, can move, shoot the three efficiently, he shot 40% on threes this past season. But easily, his most underrated trait is his ability to cut to the basket and catch a lob. The Warriors have been looking for that player ever since Kevin Durant left. This is by no means Kevin Durant, but it’s a championship style player that deserves to be on a contending team.

The only question left to ask is, can Mike Dunleavy really get this done for the sake of Steph Curry’s prime?