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The Warriors have to make a move and maybe another one after that. They know this. They can’t say it out loud, but it’s an inevitable conclusion as the pressure builds and the lifespan of this era counts down.
After getting through 33% of the season, it’s time for the Warriors to fully accept what they are and what they’re not.
They’re an old team that’s 13-14. As currently constructed, they’re not a title contender or perhaps even a team that can repeat last season’s journey past the first round of the playoffs.
There’s stress. There’s tension. Stephen Curry is playing wonderfully at 37, but he won’t be doing this forever. Draymond Green and Jimmy Butler are 35 and 36, respectively, but still clearly the Warriors’ next-best players. Jonathan Kuminga is out of Steve Kerr’s rotation — and can’t be traded until Jan. 15. Their role players sometimes are fine and sometimes just get rolled by faster, stronger opponents.
Yes, the Warriors need to make a move or two. They owe it to Curry, for sure. They owe it to Draymond and Butler (unless, of course, one of the two is put into a mega-package). They owe it to the fans who pay top dollar to get into Chase Center and they owe it to themselves.
They might even find the magic-trick trade that vaults them to a higher level — the way Mike Dunleavy turned a roster surplus, a first-round pick, and Joe Lacob’s money into Butler last February.
But the Warriors absolutely don’t want to rush into a desperate move that only makes things worse, sets this whole golden era on fire once and for all, and maybe burns into the next era, too.
It should be about urgency, not panic. About targeted aggression, not wild gambling. Really, it probably will come down to Dunleavy and Lacob’s stomach for sending away future first-round picks to sweeten the pot for a dynamic wing player. And Dunleavy and Lacob finding the right dynamic wing player.
You know what this feels like? December of last year, when the Warriors struggled after a fast start (just like this season) and were hit with many existential issues about the end of the dynastic run (same as every season for about six years in a row).
“Yeah, it feels a lot like last year, ironically,” Kerr said after practice on Tuesday. “At the trade deadline, I think we were .500. We were very inconsistent. We traded for Dennis (Schroder) first and then Jimmy obviously as we were searching for answers. Then we found it.
Today
4 days ago
Tuesday, Dec. 9
“I’m very, very confident that this group will find it. Because we already have Jimmy. And when we’re healthy, I think the lineup is really formidable. I think we have depth. I think we have everything we need. So it’s on me to put it together and to help these guys find the rhythm and the confidence I know they have inside of them.”
Kerr, as usual, is playing the long game. But in the dwindling days of the Curry era — and with Kerr coaching out the last year of his current contract — this is a different kind of long game.
It’s about managing the rest of Kuminga’s time here, sorting through the other roster pieces, winning enough games to stay steady in the standings, and deciding whether the moment’s worth pushing all-in with the draft picks.
Lacob, of course, wants the Warriors to win every game — long and short and home and away and you name the situation. And when they don’t, he wants his front office to explore every possible move to change the direction.
In the middle it all is Dunleavy, who will have to synthesize all of this into the Warriors’ plan this trade season.
My guess: The Warriors will keep pushing as long as they have Curry. They won’t concede that the run is over until it’s more than obvious or Curry tells them himself. And folks, Curry is not even close to telling them that.
My other guess: Kuminga’s trade value isn’t high enough to land a more suitable player in return, so the Warriors will probably have to add at least one unprotected future draft pick. But I don’t think they’re going to throw in three or four picks — unless it’ll bring back Giannis Antetokounmpo, which seems unlikely.
Jonathan Kuminga hasn’t played in the Warriors’ last three games. | Source: Amber Pietz/The Standard
(Here’s a preliminary list of potential good trade fits, written last month.)
It’s the long game adapted into a short-game play: Nothing crazy but borrowing reasonably from their future stash to give Curry one or two more reasonable goes at it. Just like they did last February.
This time around, the Warriors also need to find a roster spot for Pat Spencer, whose two-way limit of 50 games is coming up. And it’d be better if they could clear out minutes for rookie Will Richard, who played so unexpectedly well to start this season but has been a DNP the previous two games amid the Warriors’ crunch at guard.
It’s perfectly set up for a two-for-one, three-for-1, or three-for-two consolidation trade. Something like that is coming. You can feel it.
That also would give Kerr the best path for deciding whether he wants to keep coaching this team. If things are going well by March or so, I think Kerr will want to come back and that Lacob will be happy to have him back. If things are not going well by then, you can see how tricky everything might get.
But for now, it’s about trying to establish some stability before the moves happen in mid-January or the Feb. 5 trade deadline — and making sure they’re playoff-relevant by the time they get to mid-January or February.
“I actually like the trend, where we’re heading,” Kerr said. “We’ve been much better the last couple weeks in kind of the key areas that we’ve talked about — until the turnovers the other night, obviously. That killed us in the Portland game.
“But all in all, I think we’re heading in the right direction. I would love to get some continuity.”
Steve Kerr has a glut of guards on his roster and hasn’t found a consistent rotation yet. | Source: Amber Pietz/The Standard
Can they do it? Can they keep being a version of the Warriors that’s dangerous in the playoffs and the best platform for more potential all-time Curry moments? Can they break their recent trend of blowing games at the end?
“Well, we did it last year,” Kerr said. “After we got Jimmy last year, we found the perfect balance. Took care of the ball, defended at a high level, and both Steph and Jimmy took turns taking over games.
“So we have the formula. We just have to look right back to the end of last season.”
But the Warriors can’t just trust that everything will break their way again this spring just like it did a year ago. They’re older. Their young players still aren’t sturdy enough. They need to make a move or two.
The story never stays exactly the same. And at some point, the tale of this era will end. But I can’t imagine the Warriors are ready to accept this. They’ll make moves by Feb. 5. Because the long game isn’t about decades or years anymore. It’s about weeks and months.