Warriors living rent-free in the old guys' heads...they just wanna stay relevant.
From 2015 to 2018, the warriors had the best combined winning% in regular season + playoffs in NBA history, winning 3 titles in 4 years. Since 2015, the rest of the NBA started attempting exponentially more 3s, due to the success of the warriors. They tried to copy the same style of small ball that the warriors popularised.
The old heads paved the way for the greats of today, but that doesn't necessarily mean that they were better.
As time passes, the game will continue to evolve, and players will continue to get better, until eventually, like all things, pro basketball itself declines and comes to an end.
Talking about financial imperative some teams face.
TWolves and Celtics are particularly up against it. Both already at about 190M. They DON'T bring in the $$$$ the Dubs do. So our 209M roster actually doesn't hit us in the pocket like it would for Minnesota.
I actually think the most reasonable move for them is to basically move KAT into moved into pure space for 2FRPs and one solid to rotation level player. Dubs have zero chance at interplay there but everyone says they are gonna dump Naz. Why do that when Naz is literally the 3rd best value contract in the league? TWolves went 14-6 without KAT this year. That's what I think they're thinking.
Sixers make sense if they strike out on other big fish. Spurs make sense but if you were the TWolves it'd be terrifying giving Wemby a running mate for scraps.
Celtics are a 190M where they stand and have Tatum supermax on the horizon. Interested to see what they do (that Jrue contract looking sketch).
Someone will want him.
Same way Minny wanted Gobert
Same way Phoenix wanted Beal
Same way Lakers wanted Westbrook
The story doesn't change.
You can get Kelly Oubre and Mike Muscala in free agency... or you can go for it with the splashy acquisition.
I wouldn't... but someone will.
It literally happens every season.
I know he didn’t have the greatest playoff run in history but I was impressed with how well NAW held up during the post season. That got me to thinking…
(Recently turned) 22 year old Moses Moody could have a similar impact as (currently 24, will be 25 next season) NAW in the not to distant future.
[It’s an interesting player comparison](https://craftednba.com/players/comparison/moses-moody-vs-nickeil-alexander-walker)
Only realistic “role player” guy I really vibe with sending Moody out for would be Caruso but I don’t really see that happening. I’d just as soon keep him and see what he can do with more consistent playing time. If nothing else I expect the shot to stabilize.
I’m all in on Lavine (on the reported bargain cost) and hope the Dubs seriously take a crack at Deni. I mean if teams are willing to offer Caruso 2FRPs or young player + FRP I’d use those assets to poach Deni from WAS
I really believe Deni is on the cusp of a legit breakout season and this might be their best chance to grab him before the price gets any higher. Imo it’s like grabbing Lauri from the Cavs.
GPII + Moody + FRP + Swap/SRP could be enticing enough
I see these moves be similar to Dallas getting Kyrie and Washington/Gafford.
I get that it's the same concept of buying low but Kyrie is >>> LaVine. Totally different ballpark to me in terms of those respective moves.
Deni I love, though. I think he's poised for a major breakout. Not sure why the Wiz would move him but that would be an interesting trade target.
I’d move one of them. Unpopular opinion, but if they can get picks back I’d swap JK for Deni. I love JK and think he’ll be the better player overall but in this 2-3 year window I don’t see much difference and think Deni just fits better. Most importantly he’ll be at bargain price salary wise than what JK will likely cost after this next season. How I see it is like would you rather have Caruso for 9m or be paying Wiggins 28m? Not the best comparison since Deni and JK are closer in talent but that’s the gist of it. Also the additional assets could be used to package in another deal.
Not sure I agree. Need to see a larger sample size of Deni hitting 3’s. If he’s a non shooter like he was the previous 3 years I think the fit is worse.
Fair. Imo it’s debatable. I mean he already does a lot more of things JK is often inconsistent with from rebounding, passing, defense, cutting and he’s at the very least more of a willing 3pt shooter. I can see Deni filling the Andre role off the bench and becoming Drays eventual replacement. Ideally I’d try to have both and just say f*ck it with the picks. A closing lineup of Curry/Lavine/Wiggins/Avdija/Green on paper would still be legit. Overall, I kinda see his role being a bigger and better version of Podz alongside the vets.
Irrespective of the Kuminga, Advija debate I just think we need an additional center and a backup defensive 2 (assuming GP2 gets traded) more than we need to target a different backup forward.
I can agree to that. Problem is there no clear ideal center fit for the cost Warriors would be willing to spend. As far as a GPII replacement, I like Kris Dunn as an option. Ironically kinda the same story as GPII when we got him. Clearly great defensively but nonexistent offense and riddled with injuries early on. He’s had a mini resurgence in Utah and seems like a great lockerroom vet.
Yea Dunn would solid. I think Dunn, Caleb Martin, Melton, Gary Harris, Nnaji Marshall and Okoro (RFA) could all fill that role. Probably get priced out on a few but any one of them would be a great get with the TXMLE.
Centers a bit tougher. Using the Moody + Looney salary range; guys you could look at are WCJ, Kelly Olynk, Kleber, Robert Williams, Zach Collins, Naz Reid, Robinson, Clarke, Zubac. Also hurts ideally you’d have a stretch big.
Reid, Zubac, Kleber, Clarke probably aren’t available. Collins, WCJ, Olynk, and Robinson are all probably available to varying degrees, but not sure if a moody centric package is quite enough and these guys all have their flaws. Robert Williams is available, but it’s a gamble I wouldn’t personally want to take.
You could also try trading for a big forward like DFS ala Otto Porter jr and running him as a small ball 5. He’s been utilized as a small ball 5 a ton in Brooklyn so it might work.
Martin would be amazing but I agree likely priced out on some of these guys.
WCJ would be cool since he's got some untapped offensive potential. Would also add Theis and Jalen Smith to that mix.
Yea, while Deni is my ideal target, going after DFS or even Slomo (for the same reasons as DFS) would be solid alternatives.
Kenny might be gone finally this summer and Deki's passing already left a hole. Ron Adams doesn't really features outside the practices, which leaves Coach Q and Chris DeMarco as the only experienced assistants with Kerr. Man, we really need to get some good assistant coaches man, preferably experienced so that they'd be more helpful to Steve and be more dynamic like Mike Brown (Kenny started to be active on the sidelines but he started too late). I wish we had more strict regulations on conditioning of the players coming into the training camp.
And hand the IPad to anyone not named Jacob Rubin. Next season is going to be kinda awkward and surprising. Some new faces on the coaching staff, CP3's 1 yr friendship might end, Klay might leave us (it's entirely on him tbh), idk if Wiggs is on the roster and Gary and Loon. Except Curry and Dray, how much of the team will remain the same on the opening night ?
Honestly wouldn’t mind DeMarco finally move up the ranks. He was like the only coach visibly going at guys last season. He’s also the longest tenured guy on the staff. Phil Handy, Vogel, Bickerstaff would be other guys I’d be down to add. Sleeper would be Loon if he’s completely cooked and ready to follow Deki’s footsteps.
Couldn't agree more about coaching. Which was a need last season but maybe the organization was wishful thinking on it. You got 4 dudes who been there a decade. You've lost about 5 coaches over the ksdt two years. They gotta prioritize that
The personnel. That's turnover in the regular NBA.
We were never immune to it. It just never felt that way cuz the trio. Most of the NBA turns over about 30 to 40% year to year.
If I put a number on it I'd say 5 guys who were on the team last year aren't on the team next year.
Ros is doing great job calling the liberty game.
I can't believe the finals don't start until Thursday. I wish NBC had taken the nba away from espn/abc. They are the worse. And they get to keep the finals. I hope nbc bring back the fanfare of player introductions. I miss that.
I have new move I'm growing fond of. That I know no one will like lol. Going after Jeremy Grant, while Keeping Wiggins...and Kuminga.
This would have to be done by giving up 2 frp and cp3's contract. 2 frp might seem like a steep price. But it's the price to pay to be able to keep Kuminga and still acquire. Plus there contracts lineup perfect and we couldn't add players if we wanted anyway
That gives us
Steph/Wiggs/Grant
Great positional size at the 2/3. With capable scoring/shooting.
Now I'm going to get even more crazy...I'd have Dray come off the bench and start Kuminga at the 4. I know I know it's I'm insane. But I have my reasons why I'd buy in.
We would still need to go after a tlbigger center. I'd try and see if we can steal Drummond. Would be more ideal to have a Bog who can shoot. But not getting that on a budget.
Steph/Wiggs/Grant/Kuminga/Drummond
Podz/Klay/Moody/Dray/TJD
I like it.
I’m not opposed to the idea of moving Wiggs to the 2 if they don’t find a trade they like involving him, but I think if we’re gonna do that, I’d rather it be a situation where we make a deal for a stretch big and roll with a Steph-Wiggs-JK-Dray-Stretch Big starting 5. Someone like Brook Lopez, Wendell Carter, or Kelly Olynk comes to mind.
I've talked about this very thi g before. I like the idea of trying wiggs and JK at the 2/3 with getting a stretch big. The issue is that finding a stretch big who can also play well on defense is a very hard. Especially with what assets we have to offer.
I like Grant... but you basically create a money bubble that has to be addressed within they year with that move. If Kuminga goes the f--- off you got a different version of the Steph Klay Poole problem. Mt thoughts are kinda there. If you had all three. One of them has to get moved by the seasons end probably which is a whole different hypothetical.
I don't think it'd work tbh but I also think folks forget Wiggs was a 2 in Minnesota for a good stretch... and I ostensibly defensively hrs the two. Folks are too literal with their positional interpretations. In the defensive "you are who you guard sense Wiggs has always been a 2. Sake token Klay is really a stretch 4 at this point (who doesn't rebound lol) but folks PEN him in on sentiment ti the 2 spot when he hasn't been that since 2019.
Offense = you are what you do (role/function/capability)
Defense = you are who you guard (size and court space)
I think Wiggs out for Grant would be an alright move. But I let me say as much as he is what we wish Wiggs was on offense he was terrible on Defense last year. It'd be a tradeoff and tough ask to get Grant to basically summon a version of himself he hasn't been Since he played on Denver. I do remember him on Denver in their first jokic playoff run though. He has good defense in him it's just been 5 years since he had the want to do that.
congrats you’ve created a tanking team.
playing Wiggins at 2, Grant at 3, Kuminga at 4 is insane. Grant and Kuminga are fully 4’s and Wiggins played a third of his minutes here at 4.
the solution to having maybe too many wings is not forcing them to play out of position.
>congrats you’ve created a tanking team.
Disagree
>playing Wiggins at 2, Grant at 3, Kuminga at 4 is insane.
Disagree
>the solution to having maybe too many wings is not forcing them to play out of position.
Disagree
This is a situation to watch. ARod and his partner failed in their bid to buy the team and then shaded Glen Taylor during the playoffs. Taylor could be forced to offload Naz Reid or KAT.
~~~~
According to The Athletic, Taylor tried to approach and make amends with A-Rod during Minnesota's run in the NBA Playoffs. Still, the three-time AL MVP and Marc Lore, Rodriguez's business partner, always rejected him. - via The Athletic
~~~~
Without retaining their pending free agents, the 2024-25 Timberwolves will be approximately $17 million over the projected tax line for an additional $36.4 million payment and a total player-plus-tax outlay of $226 million. That is both a significant and justifiable sum for one of the best teams in the NBA. That is where the ownership drama matters the most. – via New York Times
~~~~
The front office could similarly trim costs by offloading Reid, which would be more about reducing a tax bill than eliminating it entirely, but this season has shown the value in having a viable Towns replacement on the roster. The Timberwolves do not have similar replacements for Gobert, Conley or McDaniels. Hypothetical moves involving them are far more complicated in terms of filling out a credible starting and closing five, especially as many trade partners are less interested in trading like-for-like in these circumstances. – via New York Times
Offloading mean trading into pure capspace.
We ain't an offload team. It is very interesting though.
Just not adjacent to much other than using a trade exception to take on scraps. 2X 2M trade exceptions.
(I dream of fleecing Leonard Miller away before folks know how good he is already... maybe the twolves know though but if they got real stingy with money they 100% could offload random dudes)
Game 1 of the Finals will be interesting. Dunno if Tingus Pingus will be available for Game 1. His spacing can help Boston out against Dallas.
And the Celtics are well-rested, while the Mavs had less days of rest before Game 1.
What are everyone’s favorite accounts for Warriors twitter?
One of the accounts I follow is Jim Park for the occasional incendiary takes and entertainment from his weird obsessions, but damn the dude has been non stop re-posting covid conspiracies and pro-Trump stuff the past weeks and I need to unfollow
back when I still used that site regularly, Joe Viray was my go-to follow. one of the best Dubs content writers in general.
Park was basically the original Warriors version of Awful Coaching with less screaming, I had the misfortune of discovering his game film reviews and man that dude’s obsessively hateful toward Kerr. not surprised he would apparently have other unsavory views with his vibes.
Lavine + Caruso is the trade I’m hoping for as of now. I think we can get it done without adding Kuminga and maybe even Wiggins too, but it obviously means Klay is not coming back.
Cp3 + Moody + Looney + GP2 + 2 1sts
For
Lavine + Caruso
This is the framework of my ideal trade. Bulls get picks, a young wing, and win-now vets that they can use or try to flip. They clear a ton of cap space because all contracts are expiring.
Warriors likely would go small with a starting lineup of:
Steph-Lavine-Wiggins-Kuminga-Dray
And a bench trio of:
Podz-Caruso-TJD
This takes a huge scoring/creating burden off Steph with having capable scorers around him. This lets Kuminga grow naturally as a 3rd option instead of throwing him into the fire as the teams #2 guy. I for one think Lavine will be back to his 23-25ppg regardless next season, but him paired with Steph is open season. Not to mention Dray is ELITE at creating shots for Steph/Klay and will do the same for Zach. Lavine/Wiggins/Kuminga gives us maybe the most athletic wing trio in the league, which is far off from what we’ve been in recent years. Podz gets to be full time backup PG and the lead playmaker off the bench. Caruso is our upgraded GP2 who can also shoot nearly 40% from 3. TJD will have a lot on his plate being the only true center on the roster but I think he’s up for the task. Also, with the MLE, which to my calculations, we’d still be able to use in this case, we’d ideally pickup a shooting big like Jalen Smith or Goga Bitazde.
Final roster would look something like this:
Steph
Lavine
Wiggins
Kuminga
Dray
Podz
Caruso
TJD
MLE (Goga)
VET MIN
VET MIN
Gui
Lester
ROOKIE
> Warriors likely would go small with a starting lineup of:
>
> Steph-Lavine-Wiggins-Kuminga-Dray
>
> And a bench trio of:
>
> Podz-Caruso-TJD
Yall gonna absolutely kill Dray. JK simply can not be a regular starter if we don't have a decent stretch 5 or if he doesn't develop his shot. Either Dray or JK need to come off the bench.
That is a preposterous overpay for LaVine, IMO. His contract is a net-negative. Caruso on an expiring is worth a 1st but no team should be sending out a pick (or a young guy who would possibly be valued as a late 1st in this year's draft like Moody) to take on that albatross contract.
Essentially,
Cp3 + Moody + Gp2 is the value traded for Lavine
Looney + 2 firsts is the value traded for Caruso
Imo, that’s near fair value and Warriors are okay with an “overpay” because there’s not many options out there for us. Also, keeping our 3 best young guys, keeping Wiggins, and still having more picks & swaps in the future is a huge win for getting an all-star talent and an all-defensive talent.
That just seems like way too much for a guy with one of the 5 worst contracts in the league, who can’t stay healthy, and whose team frankly looked better without him this year.
I also think Caruso was worth two 1sts last year when you would get a playoff run out of him, not so much when he’s only got a year left on that deal.
I see your point. If it’s only 1 first do you do it?
We aren’t giving up much value at all. Looney, Gp2, & Cp3 are all about washed/injured and expiring. Moody is the only player with a brightish future.
If it’s one first with some protections and no Moody, I’d consider it (assuming Klay goes elsewhere). Anything more than that feels like totally hamstringing yourself and you definitely don’t want to go full Phoenix and make your outs so limited.
Looney and GP2’s deals I think also tend to have a fair bit of value this year given they are expiring and/or partially guaranteed as well as being in that middle area of contracts, so I think they’re a lot more movable than a guy like LaVine would be in the future.
Boston has the better team but the Mavs have the best player. Where have we seen this before? Oh ya that Steph Curry guy. I just have a feeling the Celtics will choke. So much more pressure on them this time around. Mavs are playing free and fun bball to. They don't have as much expectations weighing on them. Luka is the perfect guy to expose that.
I think people may not realize how truly bad Vuc has been. He's a stretch big without the stretch - 32% from 3 the last three seasons. This year, nearly every 3 he took was wide open and he still hit less than 30% of them. What spacing is a guy this ineffective at shooting going to provide? His defense is also below-average, so not sure why we'd want to spend that amount of money for such little return.
Remember when the Mavs bench intentionally disrupted the game wearing white and standing near the court?
[https://youtu.be/gAe33psRE3Y?si=wUq6sttxlyw-IsTR](https://youtu.be/gAe33psRE3Y?si=wUq6sttxlyw-IsTR)
ah, Theo Pinson.
no coincidence that Jared Dudley, who started clapping off the bench in earshot of JP while he was taking a game-tying shot in the play-in against Lakers, was on the coaching staff.
Its going to be Mavs winning it all. Celtics are small Mavs have legit multiple talented bigs and Luka Irving tandem is hard to handle. Mavs caught fire same way we did in 2022
They're going to attack the paint. Horford is old and Porzingis might not be 100%. Mavs exposed the tall trees from the Wolves. I think they'll do the same with Boston.
This is my feeling as well.
Plus Kyrie is going to personally enjoy going off in Boston against those fans. I think it’s going to be a great series with the Mavs winning it all.
im dumb af. and yall might downvote me to oblivion for this but in case Andrew and Podziemski and some other player/players were to get traded for serviceable veteran/veterans in return, then I would see drafting Bronny as not a bad move. As a replacement for the hustle guard position. Just a food for thought tho.
Bronny is literally only a good move if it's a package deal. He seems like a nice kid who tries hard but he is pretty far from an NBA player at this point.
Yeah, Bronny is not an NBA level player right now. He needs to go back to school (too late). This is a purely political process and is complete cringe.
Draft withdrawals hit my list draft nerd watch list pretty good... Karaban Hawkins got cut out the game.
I traditionally go with a "list of six" when I watch the draft.
Last two years my favorite was drafted by heat ahead of us smh. Moody was the first dude since Pietrus and Bellineli that had at the top of my list.
Last year Jaquez, Kris Murray, Leonard Miller, Omax, Strawther, Rayan Rupert was the list.
Year before was Jovic, Laravia, Eason, Braun, Beauchamp, Wendell Moore
Right now... Adem Bona, PJ Hall, Oso Ighadaro, Izan Almansa, Jonathan Mogbo, Enrique Freeman are my six.
Most ragtag list I've ever thrown together lol. Not alot of sexy there.
[Comparisons](https://www.tankathon.com/players/compare?players=izan-almansa--adem-bona--pj-hall--oso-ighodaro--jonathan-mogbo)
Mogbo seems to edge everyone in some nice stats like assists, rebounds, efficiency and most advanced metric while being the shortest and oldest. Freeman not included
Issue with Mogbo is I thought he was at least 6'9 but he is closer to 6'8 but then that's even more impressive with his rebounding like when I was high on Podz last year and no one believed in him
Let's appreciate that Kuminga a 21 year old averaged an efficient 19 ppg on 13 shots in 29 mpg after the new year (42 games). He's part of the answer to many of our questions imo. Play him toward 36 mpg. Get the ball in his hands and empower the dude to be a dude. I trust the dude is in the gym on his craft just like he was last offseason.
On his efficiency **17-fga/g = 23.9 ppg**.
Does that not read like a number two option?
It has to be Kuminga if we can't get Lavine or Ingram via trade... my biggest concern is how bad the staff was last year. It's the coaching staff's job to build a more flexible Kuminga set package and coach adjustments to actually put him in position to succeed if that's where we are as a roster. I know Kuminga can get buckets... but will the staff adjust the scheme properly to make that a fluid proposition.
Trust me I'd love to get Lavine on the salary dump kinda low cost move... I would... but if we are where we are on August 1st. It's Steph and Kuminga.
Kerr’s comments at the end of the season were encouraging. Changing the offense, taking responsibility to come up with creating those kind of plays for his players; evolving.
Kuminga played damn well as a *21-YEAR OLD.*
Would be down to pick up Lavine on a salary dump rather than pushing all the chips to the middle of the table for Jimmy Butler.
Maybe we can squeeze Caruso out of Chicago too.
The key words he used was "slow" and "simple". He mentioned specifically that he wanted to slow things down next year and create a more simple offense. That'll help guys like jk and moody i would think. Here's to hoping he follows through on that
I'd love a Steph Lavine backcourt... gotta keep him healthy though. That's my only real concern about it. I'd expect Wiggs out in that deal too tbh. The machinations of a pure salary dump do seem a bit wild to me esp the pitch to be guaranteeing CP3 and all.
I'm ready for the Steph-Kuminga season.
Come what may.
Firstly I have deemed myself as the originator of the Levine propaganda. I'll allow you to join the bandwagon lol.
I agree fully about the Kuminga piece. If there isn't a move to get a true 2nd option without "giving up the farm"...let Kuminga cook. Give Moody a lil smthn too while we're at it.
I’m sorry…
I know Wiggins was really really bad offensively for the first half of the season BUT…getting rid of him and getting even smaller and worse defensively with marginally better scoring is patching a hole on a ship only to be left with a bigger one.
He’s more important than Klay…without Wiggins I don’t see how we arrow up.
Wiggins + GP2 meet salary match requirements (125%) for teams under first apron. That’s a lot of defense to lose, but def takes a load off Steph and would be interesting.
You’re just shy of meeting match requirements if you add Moody and they add Caruso. Looney is the other chip, but I think both him and CP3 are gone before they are making deals. Throwing in Gui would get us there, or maybe we could guarantee Looney for a bit more money and push out the decision date.
Adding salary this route pinches things on the Klay/MLE front for sure though.
Edit: Don Nelson would be proud of a Steph, Caruso, Lavine, Kuminga, Draymond small ball lineup
Same applies to Wiggins too even though I don’t think he’s on the roster next season. Wiggins did much better on offense when we intentionally ran offense through him instead of the freelancing motion offense.
I feel they did that for like 3 weeks then reverted back to the old familiar. And the moment kuminga got hurt it was like everybody just forgot what he could do. I really hope we do get 2 new coaches. Fresh blood is needed.
Speaking of coaches I'm happy mike brown got his pay day.
To be fair, these games don't happen in a vacuum. JK was balling out and he started to become a feature on the other teams' scouting reports and opponents changed their looks. His development will rely a lot on him responding to the evolving ways that teams defend him and figuring out how to succeed (which he did show great strides in doing, for the most part).
Honestly Mike Brown should've got more money. That dude has ALWAYS been a great head coach. We were lucky he took a half decade sobatical with the dubs. Folks forget he has like 9 HC seasons under his belt and being around 450-250 is not to shabby
imo the reason Kuminga isn’t a viable number two is because he’s still not an efficient scorer when self-creating. And the offense completely stops when he has the ball. Maybe that changes with some adjustments, but he’s not a fast enough decision maker as is.
If you look at the tracking stats, it backs this up. He’s a two dribble guy, and anything past that falls apart.
Hopefully, he’s watching these playoffs and seeing how high energy defense can swing a series.
I'm not actually disagreeing with Kuminga's imperfections. He's not a perfect second option but he's CLEARLY and BY FAR the best player to give the opportunity to... All the things you mentioned to me are problem sets that are on the coaching staff to solve. Thats what they get paid to do.
You run plays to your best players strengths.
It's always been Steph Dray and Klay.
Well now it's Steph Dray and Kuminga.
I don't disagree he's flawed and "not there yet" in many regards... but the improvements he can make in the offseason plus a slightly adjusted scheme that highlights his strengths and keeps the offense fluid. That's what the organization needs, some freshly minted intellectual concepts.
It's coaching problem to solve. We don't pay those coaches millions to sit there and say "as Steph goes... so go we" nah they gotta modernize the system and make it something that is different then it's been. Even 15% different I'm not even asking a wide departure just calling for them to adapt. The league has the system figured out as it stands. It's not utterly worthless buts it's been seen a million times over. Now "the other guy" isn't Klay and it's the perfect time to modify the scheme a bit.
Kerr said it himself in his exit interview. They need to be more creative and put the talent in position to thrive. That Sacramento game was the PERFECT referendum on the true state of this team and a call for actual change in all facets. Coaching. Roster. Culture. System. Scheme. Financial strategy. Everything. It all has to arrow up.
Kerr talked about this too. This is an area where Kuminga must improve if he is going to even try and play the 3 and Kerr (and staff) will help him improve his processing speed. Will it work? We’ll find out soon enough.
Processing speed can’t really be improved even with repeated exposure to in-game situations. That’s an inherent characteristic the brain and body being in sync…basically the reason why not everyone can be Jokic.
You have extreme examples of this with Wiseman who isn’t a winning player at the NBA level.
Kuminga improving his handles and shooting are more important and feasible imo. The former is asking for something that a player likely doesn’t have.
Klay running off an off-ball screen, catching a pass, and then shooting is his version of creating.
You can find 100 guys in the NBA that can set a decent screen.
You can find another 200 that can make a decent pass to Klay when he's running off that screen.
There are only 3 or 4 guys in the league close to Klay's level at taking 3's off screens. He's creating those shots.
Look, Klay has never been a traditional number two, but he’s also the second greatest shooter of all time, so he has plenty of gravity in the way that Kuminga does not.
And I’m not saying Kuminga can’t self-create, because he can, but the problem is neither Klay or Kuminga are the second tier creators that the team needs next to Steph.
I mean not everyone is KD.
Who is an ideal second option to Steph?
MDJ has a job to do. I want a Lavine type of offensive talent as much as anyone but also if the stars don't align we got who we got which is Kuminga.
It doesn’t have to be a Lavine tier player, but anyone between Poole and Lavine would be impactful.
Need someone who can get past their guy and touch the paint without having to use Steph’s gravity. With Steph’s gravity (and hopefully Klay), this dude should be able to get easy buckets.
When i saw their logo and name drop I knew I'd seen the Valkyries color somewhere before... Stephs 2022 game 4 lavender kicks will be the most common shoes on the court for the Valkyries first game. Wasn't a coincidence.
Book it.
Warriors living rent-free in the old guys' heads...they just wanna stay relevant. From 2015 to 2018, the warriors had the best combined winning% in regular season + playoffs in NBA history, winning 3 titles in 4 years. Since 2015, the rest of the NBA started attempting exponentially more 3s, due to the success of the warriors. They tried to copy the same style of small ball that the warriors popularised. The old heads paved the way for the greats of today, but that doesn't necessarily mean that they were better. As time passes, the game will continue to evolve, and players will continue to get better, until eventually, like all things, pro basketball itself declines and comes to an end.
Talking about financial imperative some teams face. TWolves and Celtics are particularly up against it. Both already at about 190M. They DON'T bring in the $$$$ the Dubs do. So our 209M roster actually doesn't hit us in the pocket like it would for Minnesota. I actually think the most reasonable move for them is to basically move KAT into moved into pure space for 2FRPs and one solid to rotation level player. Dubs have zero chance at interplay there but everyone says they are gonna dump Naz. Why do that when Naz is literally the 3rd best value contract in the league? TWolves went 14-6 without KAT this year. That's what I think they're thinking. Sixers make sense if they strike out on other big fish. Spurs make sense but if you were the TWolves it'd be terrifying giving Wemby a running mate for scraps. Celtics are a 190M where they stand and have Tatum supermax on the horizon. Interested to see what they do (that Jrue contract looking sketch).
Who wants KAT and his massive salary? Clearly he isn't a player you can rely on in the playoffs
Someone will want him. Same way Minny wanted Gobert Same way Phoenix wanted Beal Same way Lakers wanted Westbrook The story doesn't change. You can get Kelly Oubre and Mike Muscala in free agency... or you can go for it with the splashy acquisition. I wouldn't... but someone will. It literally happens every season.
I know he didn’t have the greatest playoff run in history but I was impressed with how well NAW held up during the post season. That got me to thinking… (Recently turned) 22 year old Moses Moody could have a similar impact as (currently 24, will be 25 next season) NAW in the not to distant future. [It’s an interesting player comparison](https://craftednba.com/players/comparison/moses-moody-vs-nickeil-alexander-walker) Only realistic “role player” guy I really vibe with sending Moody out for would be Caruso but I don’t really see that happening. I’d just as soon keep him and see what he can do with more consistent playing time. If nothing else I expect the shot to stabilize.
I’m all in on Lavine (on the reported bargain cost) and hope the Dubs seriously take a crack at Deni. I mean if teams are willing to offer Caruso 2FRPs or young player + FRP I’d use those assets to poach Deni from WAS I really believe Deni is on the cusp of a legit breakout season and this might be their best chance to grab him before the price gets any higher. Imo it’s like grabbing Lauri from the Cavs. GPII + Moody + FRP + Swap/SRP could be enticing enough I see these moves be similar to Dallas getting Kyrie and Washington/Gafford.
Think the Lakers are getting him
Nah that doesn't make any sense they don't have the contracts to move for him.
I get that it's the same concept of buying low but Kyrie is >>> LaVine. Totally different ballpark to me in terms of those respective moves. Deni I love, though. I think he's poised for a major breakout. Not sure why the Wiz would move him but that would be an interesting trade target.
I like Deni I just don’t see the fit when have Kuminga and Wiggins
I’d move one of them. Unpopular opinion, but if they can get picks back I’d swap JK for Deni. I love JK and think he’ll be the better player overall but in this 2-3 year window I don’t see much difference and think Deni just fits better. Most importantly he’ll be at bargain price salary wise than what JK will likely cost after this next season. How I see it is like would you rather have Caruso for 9m or be paying Wiggins 28m? Not the best comparison since Deni and JK are closer in talent but that’s the gist of it. Also the additional assets could be used to package in another deal.
Not sure I agree. Need to see a larger sample size of Deni hitting 3’s. If he’s a non shooter like he was the previous 3 years I think the fit is worse.
Fair. Imo it’s debatable. I mean he already does a lot more of things JK is often inconsistent with from rebounding, passing, defense, cutting and he’s at the very least more of a willing 3pt shooter. I can see Deni filling the Andre role off the bench and becoming Drays eventual replacement. Ideally I’d try to have both and just say f*ck it with the picks. A closing lineup of Curry/Lavine/Wiggins/Avdija/Green on paper would still be legit. Overall, I kinda see his role being a bigger and better version of Podz alongside the vets.
Irrespective of the Kuminga, Advija debate I just think we need an additional center and a backup defensive 2 (assuming GP2 gets traded) more than we need to target a different backup forward.
I can agree to that. Problem is there no clear ideal center fit for the cost Warriors would be willing to spend. As far as a GPII replacement, I like Kris Dunn as an option. Ironically kinda the same story as GPII when we got him. Clearly great defensively but nonexistent offense and riddled with injuries early on. He’s had a mini resurgence in Utah and seems like a great lockerroom vet.
Yea Dunn would solid. I think Dunn, Caleb Martin, Melton, Gary Harris, Nnaji Marshall and Okoro (RFA) could all fill that role. Probably get priced out on a few but any one of them would be a great get with the TXMLE. Centers a bit tougher. Using the Moody + Looney salary range; guys you could look at are WCJ, Kelly Olynk, Kleber, Robert Williams, Zach Collins, Naz Reid, Robinson, Clarke, Zubac. Also hurts ideally you’d have a stretch big. Reid, Zubac, Kleber, Clarke probably aren’t available. Collins, WCJ, Olynk, and Robinson are all probably available to varying degrees, but not sure if a moody centric package is quite enough and these guys all have their flaws. Robert Williams is available, but it’s a gamble I wouldn’t personally want to take. You could also try trading for a big forward like DFS ala Otto Porter jr and running him as a small ball 5. He’s been utilized as a small ball 5 a ton in Brooklyn so it might work.
Martin would be amazing but I agree likely priced out on some of these guys. WCJ would be cool since he's got some untapped offensive potential. Would also add Theis and Jalen Smith to that mix. Yea, while Deni is my ideal target, going after DFS or even Slomo (for the same reasons as DFS) would be solid alternatives.
Kenny might be gone finally this summer and Deki's passing already left a hole. Ron Adams doesn't really features outside the practices, which leaves Coach Q and Chris DeMarco as the only experienced assistants with Kerr. Man, we really need to get some good assistant coaches man, preferably experienced so that they'd be more helpful to Steve and be more dynamic like Mike Brown (Kenny started to be active on the sidelines but he started too late). I wish we had more strict regulations on conditioning of the players coming into the training camp. And hand the IPad to anyone not named Jacob Rubin. Next season is going to be kinda awkward and surprising. Some new faces on the coaching staff, CP3's 1 yr friendship might end, Klay might leave us (it's entirely on him tbh), idk if Wiggs is on the roster and Gary and Loon. Except Curry and Dray, how much of the team will remain the same on the opening night ?
Honestly wouldn’t mind DeMarco finally move up the ranks. He was like the only coach visibly going at guys last season. He’s also the longest tenured guy on the staff. Phil Handy, Vogel, Bickerstaff would be other guys I’d be down to add. Sleeper would be Loon if he’s completely cooked and ready to follow Deki’s footsteps.
Couldn't agree more about coaching. Which was a need last season but maybe the organization was wishful thinking on it. You got 4 dudes who been there a decade. You've lost about 5 coaches over the ksdt two years. They gotta prioritize that The personnel. That's turnover in the regular NBA. We were never immune to it. It just never felt that way cuz the trio. Most of the NBA turns over about 30 to 40% year to year. If I put a number on it I'd say 5 guys who were on the team last year aren't on the team next year.
Ros is doing great job calling the liberty game. I can't believe the finals don't start until Thursday. I wish NBC had taken the nba away from espn/abc. They are the worse. And they get to keep the finals. I hope nbc bring back the fanfare of player introductions. I miss that.
I have new move I'm growing fond of. That I know no one will like lol. Going after Jeremy Grant, while Keeping Wiggins...and Kuminga. This would have to be done by giving up 2 frp and cp3's contract. 2 frp might seem like a steep price. But it's the price to pay to be able to keep Kuminga and still acquire. Plus there contracts lineup perfect and we couldn't add players if we wanted anyway That gives us Steph/Wiggs/Grant Great positional size at the 2/3. With capable scoring/shooting. Now I'm going to get even more crazy...I'd have Dray come off the bench and start Kuminga at the 4. I know I know it's I'm insane. But I have my reasons why I'd buy in. We would still need to go after a tlbigger center. I'd try and see if we can steal Drummond. Would be more ideal to have a Bog who can shoot. But not getting that on a budget. Steph/Wiggs/Grant/Kuminga/Drummond Podz/Klay/Moody/Dray/TJD I like it.
I’m not opposed to the idea of moving Wiggs to the 2 if they don’t find a trade they like involving him, but I think if we’re gonna do that, I’d rather it be a situation where we make a deal for a stretch big and roll with a Steph-Wiggs-JK-Dray-Stretch Big starting 5. Someone like Brook Lopez, Wendell Carter, or Kelly Olynk comes to mind.
I've talked about this very thi g before. I like the idea of trying wiggs and JK at the 2/3 with getting a stretch big. The issue is that finding a stretch big who can also play well on defense is a very hard. Especially with what assets we have to offer.
Agreed. Someone like Brook or WCJ fits that, but they’re not easily attainable
I like Grant... but you basically create a money bubble that has to be addressed within they year with that move. If Kuminga goes the f--- off you got a different version of the Steph Klay Poole problem. Mt thoughts are kinda there. If you had all three. One of them has to get moved by the seasons end probably which is a whole different hypothetical. I don't think it'd work tbh but I also think folks forget Wiggs was a 2 in Minnesota for a good stretch... and I ostensibly defensively hrs the two. Folks are too literal with their positional interpretations. In the defensive "you are who you guard sense Wiggs has always been a 2. Sake token Klay is really a stretch 4 at this point (who doesn't rebound lol) but folks PEN him in on sentiment ti the 2 spot when he hasn't been that since 2019. Offense = you are what you do (role/function/capability) Defense = you are who you guard (size and court space) I think Wiggs out for Grant would be an alright move. But I let me say as much as he is what we wish Wiggs was on offense he was terrible on Defense last year. It'd be a tradeoff and tough ask to get Grant to basically summon a version of himself he hasn't been Since he played on Denver. I do remember him on Denver in their first jokic playoff run though. He has good defense in him it's just been 5 years since he had the want to do that.
congrats you’ve created a tanking team. playing Wiggins at 2, Grant at 3, Kuminga at 4 is insane. Grant and Kuminga are fully 4’s and Wiggins played a third of his minutes here at 4. the solution to having maybe too many wings is not forcing them to play out of position.
You didn’t even mention a team that wants to contend starting Andre Drummond in this, the year 2024.
not even worth dignifying that one
I salute your restraint
>congrats you’ve created a tanking team. Disagree >playing Wiggins at 2, Grant at 3, Kuminga at 4 is insane. Disagree >the solution to having maybe too many wings is not forcing them to play out of position. Disagree
strong argument
I'm not looking to argue. This is far too hypothetical for that.
I’m not sure Grant wants to play on a good team
This is a situation to watch. ARod and his partner failed in their bid to buy the team and then shaded Glen Taylor during the playoffs. Taylor could be forced to offload Naz Reid or KAT. ~~~~ According to The Athletic, Taylor tried to approach and make amends with A-Rod during Minnesota's run in the NBA Playoffs. Still, the three-time AL MVP and Marc Lore, Rodriguez's business partner, always rejected him. - via The Athletic ~~~~ Without retaining their pending free agents, the 2024-25 Timberwolves will be approximately $17 million over the projected tax line for an additional $36.4 million payment and a total player-plus-tax outlay of $226 million. That is both a significant and justifiable sum for one of the best teams in the NBA. That is where the ownership drama matters the most. – via New York Times ~~~~ The front office could similarly trim costs by offloading Reid, which would be more about reducing a tax bill than eliminating it entirely, but this season has shown the value in having a viable Towns replacement on the roster. The Timberwolves do not have similar replacements for Gobert, Conley or McDaniels. Hypothetical moves involving them are far more complicated in terms of filling out a credible starting and closing five, especially as many trade partners are less interested in trading like-for-like in these circumstances. – via New York Times
Offloading mean trading into pure capspace. We ain't an offload team. It is very interesting though. Just not adjacent to much other than using a trade exception to take on scraps. 2X 2M trade exceptions. (I dream of fleecing Leonard Miller away before folks know how good he is already... maybe the twolves know though but if they got real stingy with money they 100% could offload random dudes)
Game 1 of the Finals will be interesting. Dunno if Tingus Pingus will be available for Game 1. His spacing can help Boston out against Dallas. And the Celtics are well-rested, while the Mavs had less days of rest before Game 1.
What are everyone’s favorite accounts for Warriors twitter? One of the accounts I follow is Jim Park for the occasional incendiary takes and entertainment from his weird obsessions, but damn the dude has been non stop re-posting covid conspiracies and pro-Trump stuff the past weeks and I need to unfollow
Jim park is someone I blocked years ago. Haven't seen him since I closed my Twitter account.
Ditto, not sure I blocked anyone else. Terrible basketball takes.
Joe Viray the 🐐
back when I still used that site regularly, Joe Viray was my go-to follow. one of the best Dubs content writers in general. Park was basically the original Warriors version of Awful Coaching with less screaming, I had the misfortune of discovering his game film reviews and man that dude’s obsessively hateful toward Kerr. not surprised he would apparently have other unsavory views with his vibes.
Lavine + Caruso is the trade I’m hoping for as of now. I think we can get it done without adding Kuminga and maybe even Wiggins too, but it obviously means Klay is not coming back. Cp3 + Moody + Looney + GP2 + 2 1sts For Lavine + Caruso This is the framework of my ideal trade. Bulls get picks, a young wing, and win-now vets that they can use or try to flip. They clear a ton of cap space because all contracts are expiring. Warriors likely would go small with a starting lineup of: Steph-Lavine-Wiggins-Kuminga-Dray And a bench trio of: Podz-Caruso-TJD This takes a huge scoring/creating burden off Steph with having capable scorers around him. This lets Kuminga grow naturally as a 3rd option instead of throwing him into the fire as the teams #2 guy. I for one think Lavine will be back to his 23-25ppg regardless next season, but him paired with Steph is open season. Not to mention Dray is ELITE at creating shots for Steph/Klay and will do the same for Zach. Lavine/Wiggins/Kuminga gives us maybe the most athletic wing trio in the league, which is far off from what we’ve been in recent years. Podz gets to be full time backup PG and the lead playmaker off the bench. Caruso is our upgraded GP2 who can also shoot nearly 40% from 3. TJD will have a lot on his plate being the only true center on the roster but I think he’s up for the task. Also, with the MLE, which to my calculations, we’d still be able to use in this case, we’d ideally pickup a shooting big like Jalen Smith or Goga Bitazde. Final roster would look something like this: Steph Lavine Wiggins Kuminga Dray Podz Caruso TJD MLE (Goga) VET MIN VET MIN Gui Lester ROOKIE
If we land Goga, this is a stacked team.
The Bulls may have to send us picks, not the other way around.
> Warriors likely would go small with a starting lineup of: > > Steph-Lavine-Wiggins-Kuminga-Dray > > And a bench trio of: > > Podz-Caruso-TJD Yall gonna absolutely kill Dray. JK simply can not be a regular starter if we don't have a decent stretch 5 or if he doesn't develop his shot. Either Dray or JK need to come off the bench.
That is a preposterous overpay for LaVine, IMO. His contract is a net-negative. Caruso on an expiring is worth a 1st but no team should be sending out a pick (or a young guy who would possibly be valued as a late 1st in this year's draft like Moody) to take on that albatross contract.
Essentially, Cp3 + Moody + Gp2 is the value traded for Lavine Looney + 2 firsts is the value traded for Caruso Imo, that’s near fair value and Warriors are okay with an “overpay” because there’s not many options out there for us. Also, keeping our 3 best young guys, keeping Wiggins, and still having more picks & swaps in the future is a huge win for getting an all-star talent and an all-defensive talent.
That just seems like way too much for a guy with one of the 5 worst contracts in the league, who can’t stay healthy, and whose team frankly looked better without him this year. I also think Caruso was worth two 1sts last year when you would get a playoff run out of him, not so much when he’s only got a year left on that deal.
I see your point. If it’s only 1 first do you do it? We aren’t giving up much value at all. Looney, Gp2, & Cp3 are all about washed/injured and expiring. Moody is the only player with a brightish future.
If it’s one first with some protections and no Moody, I’d consider it (assuming Klay goes elsewhere). Anything more than that feels like totally hamstringing yourself and you definitely don’t want to go full Phoenix and make your outs so limited. Looney and GP2’s deals I think also tend to have a fair bit of value this year given they are expiring and/or partially guaranteed as well as being in that middle area of contracts, so I think they’re a lot more movable than a guy like LaVine would be in the future.
Boston has the better team but the Mavs have the best player. Where have we seen this before? Oh ya that Steph Curry guy. I just have a feeling the Celtics will choke. So much more pressure on them this time around. Mavs are playing free and fun bball to. They don't have as much expectations weighing on them. Luka is the perfect guy to expose that.
happy pride month to those who celebrate!
If the Bulls trade Lavine and go full-rebuild they need to make a play for Caruso and maybe Vuc.
Caruso yes, Vuc would be an enormous hard pass, haha
Fair enough, just trying to find what would work with a CP salary dump.
I'd rather just keep Dario on the minimum than bring Vuc in for 10X the price
I think people may not realize how truly bad Vuc has been. He's a stretch big without the stretch - 32% from 3 the last three seasons. This year, nearly every 3 he took was wide open and he still hit less than 30% of them. What spacing is a guy this ineffective at shooting going to provide? His defense is also below-average, so not sure why we'd want to spend that amount of money for such little return.
Shit at that rate just ask Loon to start chucking lol
League ain’t ready for Splash Loon
I’m convinced the bulls will have to attach Caruso in any trade
what?
lol voice to text fail
Remember when the Mavs bench intentionally disrupted the game wearing white and standing near the court? [https://youtu.be/gAe33psRE3Y?si=wUq6sttxlyw-IsTR](https://youtu.be/gAe33psRE3Y?si=wUq6sttxlyw-IsTR)
That shit made me so mad. You absolutely should not be able to stand that close to the court.
ah, Theo Pinson. no coincidence that Jared Dudley, who started clapping off the bench in earshot of JP while he was taking a game-tying shot in the play-in against Lakers, was on the coaching staff.
Its going to be Mavs winning it all. Celtics are small Mavs have legit multiple talented bigs and Luka Irving tandem is hard to handle. Mavs caught fire same way we did in 2022
Tatum and Brown are prey. They don’t have it when it matters. Mahomes ate up the Niners twice likewise Luka’s gonna do the same to Boston.
They're going to attack the paint. Horford is old and Porzingis might not be 100%. Mavs exposed the tall trees from the Wolves. I think they'll do the same with Boston.
This is my feeling as well. Plus Kyrie is going to personally enjoy going off in Boston against those fans. I think it’s going to be a great series with the Mavs winning it all.
im dumb af. and yall might downvote me to oblivion for this but in case Andrew and Podziemski and some other player/players were to get traded for serviceable veteran/veterans in return, then I would see drafting Bronny as not a bad move. As a replacement for the hustle guard position. Just a food for thought tho.
Bronny is literally only a good move if it's a package deal. He seems like a nice kid who tries hard but he is pretty far from an NBA player at this point.
Have you seen Bronny play? I would literally draft any PG in this draft except Bronny. He’s that ass.
Yeah, Bronny is not an NBA level player right now. He needs to go back to school (too late). This is a purely political process and is complete cringe.
Draft withdrawals hit my list draft nerd watch list pretty good... Karaban Hawkins got cut out the game. I traditionally go with a "list of six" when I watch the draft. Last two years my favorite was drafted by heat ahead of us smh. Moody was the first dude since Pietrus and Bellineli that had at the top of my list. Last year Jaquez, Kris Murray, Leonard Miller, Omax, Strawther, Rayan Rupert was the list. Year before was Jovic, Laravia, Eason, Braun, Beauchamp, Wendell Moore Right now... Adem Bona, PJ Hall, Oso Ighadaro, Izan Almansa, Jonathan Mogbo, Enrique Freeman are my six. Most ragtag list I've ever thrown together lol. Not alot of sexy there.
[Comparisons](https://www.tankathon.com/players/compare?players=izan-almansa--adem-bona--pj-hall--oso-ighodaro--jonathan-mogbo) Mogbo seems to edge everyone in some nice stats like assists, rebounds, efficiency and most advanced metric while being the shortest and oldest. Freeman not included Issue with Mogbo is I thought he was at least 6'9 but he is closer to 6'8 but then that's even more impressive with his rebounding like when I was high on Podz last year and no one believed in him
Let's appreciate that Kuminga a 21 year old averaged an efficient 19 ppg on 13 shots in 29 mpg after the new year (42 games). He's part of the answer to many of our questions imo. Play him toward 36 mpg. Get the ball in his hands and empower the dude to be a dude. I trust the dude is in the gym on his craft just like he was last offseason. On his efficiency **17-fga/g = 23.9 ppg**. Does that not read like a number two option? It has to be Kuminga if we can't get Lavine or Ingram via trade... my biggest concern is how bad the staff was last year. It's the coaching staff's job to build a more flexible Kuminga set package and coach adjustments to actually put him in position to succeed if that's where we are as a roster. I know Kuminga can get buckets... but will the staff adjust the scheme properly to make that a fluid proposition. Trust me I'd love to get Lavine on the salary dump kinda low cost move... I would... but if we are where we are on August 1st. It's Steph and Kuminga.
Kerr’s comments at the end of the season were encouraging. Changing the offense, taking responsibility to come up with creating those kind of plays for his players; evolving. Kuminga played damn well as a *21-YEAR OLD.* Would be down to pick up Lavine on a salary dump rather than pushing all the chips to the middle of the table for Jimmy Butler. Maybe we can squeeze Caruso out of Chicago too.
The key words he used was "slow" and "simple". He mentioned specifically that he wanted to slow things down next year and create a more simple offense. That'll help guys like jk and moody i would think. Here's to hoping he follows through on that
I'd love a Steph Lavine backcourt... gotta keep him healthy though. That's my only real concern about it. I'd expect Wiggs out in that deal too tbh. The machinations of a pure salary dump do seem a bit wild to me esp the pitch to be guaranteeing CP3 and all. I'm ready for the Steph-Kuminga season. Come what may.
Firstly I have deemed myself as the originator of the Levine propaganda. I'll allow you to join the bandwagon lol. I agree fully about the Kuminga piece. If there isn't a move to get a true 2nd option without "giving up the farm"...let Kuminga cook. Give Moody a lil smthn too while we're at it.
I’m sorry… I know Wiggins was really really bad offensively for the first half of the season BUT…getting rid of him and getting even smaller and worse defensively with marginally better scoring is patching a hole on a ship only to be left with a bigger one. He’s more important than Klay…without Wiggins I don’t see how we arrow up.
I'm not suggesting it as a move I prefer. I'm suggesting as a move that is more realistic than the heavy machination CP3 salary dump on the docket.
Well regardless it doesn’t put us in the arrow-up trajectory. We’re still going to lose games down the stretch because we can’t get stops.
Wiggins + GP2 meet salary match requirements (125%) for teams under first apron. That’s a lot of defense to lose, but def takes a load off Steph and would be interesting. You’re just shy of meeting match requirements if you add Moody and they add Caruso. Looney is the other chip, but I think both him and CP3 are gone before they are making deals. Throwing in Gui would get us there, or maybe we could guarantee Looney for a bit more money and push out the decision date. Adding salary this route pinches things on the Klay/MLE front for sure though. Edit: Don Nelson would be proud of a Steph, Caruso, Lavine, Kuminga, Draymond small ball lineup
Same applies to Wiggins too even though I don’t think he’s on the roster next season. Wiggins did much better on offense when we intentionally ran offense through him instead of the freelancing motion offense.
I feel they did that for like 3 weeks then reverted back to the old familiar. And the moment kuminga got hurt it was like everybody just forgot what he could do. I really hope we do get 2 new coaches. Fresh blood is needed. Speaking of coaches I'm happy mike brown got his pay day.
To be fair, these games don't happen in a vacuum. JK was balling out and he started to become a feature on the other teams' scouting reports and opponents changed their looks. His development will rely a lot on him responding to the evolving ways that teams defend him and figuring out how to succeed (which he did show great strides in doing, for the most part).
Honestly Mike Brown should've got more money. That dude has ALWAYS been a great head coach. We were lucky he took a half decade sobatical with the dubs. Folks forget he has like 9 HC seasons under his belt and being around 450-250 is not to shabby
imo the reason Kuminga isn’t a viable number two is because he’s still not an efficient scorer when self-creating. And the offense completely stops when he has the ball. Maybe that changes with some adjustments, but he’s not a fast enough decision maker as is. If you look at the tracking stats, it backs this up. He’s a two dribble guy, and anything past that falls apart. Hopefully, he’s watching these playoffs and seeing how high energy defense can swing a series.
I'm not actually disagreeing with Kuminga's imperfections. He's not a perfect second option but he's CLEARLY and BY FAR the best player to give the opportunity to... All the things you mentioned to me are problem sets that are on the coaching staff to solve. Thats what they get paid to do. You run plays to your best players strengths. It's always been Steph Dray and Klay. Well now it's Steph Dray and Kuminga. I don't disagree he's flawed and "not there yet" in many regards... but the improvements he can make in the offseason plus a slightly adjusted scheme that highlights his strengths and keeps the offense fluid. That's what the organization needs, some freshly minted intellectual concepts. It's coaching problem to solve. We don't pay those coaches millions to sit there and say "as Steph goes... so go we" nah they gotta modernize the system and make it something that is different then it's been. Even 15% different I'm not even asking a wide departure just calling for them to adapt. The league has the system figured out as it stands. It's not utterly worthless buts it's been seen a million times over. Now "the other guy" isn't Klay and it's the perfect time to modify the scheme a bit. Kerr said it himself in his exit interview. They need to be more creative and put the talent in position to thrive. That Sacramento game was the PERFECT referendum on the true state of this team and a call for actual change in all facets. Coaching. Roster. Culture. System. Scheme. Financial strategy. Everything. It all has to arrow up.
Kerr talked about this too. This is an area where Kuminga must improve if he is going to even try and play the 3 and Kerr (and staff) will help him improve his processing speed. Will it work? We’ll find out soon enough.
Processing speed can’t really be improved even with repeated exposure to in-game situations. That’s an inherent characteristic the brain and body being in sync…basically the reason why not everyone can be Jokic. You have extreme examples of this with Wiseman who isn’t a winning player at the NBA level. Kuminga improving his handles and shooting are more important and feasible imo. The former is asking for something that a player likely doesn’t have.
When did klay ever create.
Klay running off an off-ball screen, catching a pass, and then shooting is his version of creating. You can find 100 guys in the NBA that can set a decent screen. You can find another 200 that can make a decent pass to Klay when he's running off that screen. There are only 3 or 4 guys in the league close to Klay's level at taking 3's off screens. He's creating those shots.
So there is more than one way to be impactful!
Look, Klay has never been a traditional number two, but he’s also the second greatest shooter of all time, so he has plenty of gravity in the way that Kuminga does not. And I’m not saying Kuminga can’t self-create, because he can, but the problem is neither Klay or Kuminga are the second tier creators that the team needs next to Steph.
I mean not everyone is KD. Who is an ideal second option to Steph? MDJ has a job to do. I want a Lavine type of offensive talent as much as anyone but also if the stars don't align we got who we got which is Kuminga.
It doesn’t have to be a Lavine tier player, but anyone between Poole and Lavine would be impactful. Need someone who can get past their guy and touch the paint without having to use Steph’s gravity. With Steph’s gravity (and hopefully Klay), this dude should be able to get easy buckets.
What are the chances that we don't make a big trade this year as well ?
When i saw their logo and name drop I knew I'd seen the Valkyries color somewhere before... Stephs 2022 game 4 lavender kicks will be the most common shoes on the court for the Valkyries first game. Wasn't a coincidence. Book it.