Kurtenbach: Warriors must choose direction by trade deadline — for this season and beyond
The Golden State Warriors have two weeks to figure out if they have enough around Steph Curry to be good enough to seriously compete this season.
Entering the second half of the season, the Warriors have more questions than answers.
But one question supersedes all the others: Who do the Warriors want to be this season?
After a first half that provided the full spectrum of performances, the Warriors currently lie firmly in the realm of mediocrity — ninth place in the Western Conference. And if they continue on this path, they’ll play in the league’s new(ish) play-in tournament, which starts in 70 days.
Novelty aside, playing in a bottom-tier battle royale is not the Warriors’ goal for this campaign, even if 2021 is a “bridge season”.
“We obviously have playoff aspirations,” Steph Curry said before the NBA All-Star Game. “We know when we get there, no matter what seed we have we’re gonna be a tough out. It’s just a matter of getting there and playing our best basketball towards the end of the season and rolling the dice when we get there.
“That’s the mission… to keep progressing towards our best basketball in May, and let’s see where we go from there.”
Yes, the Warriors need to be better. But can this current roster be better? Can these guys already wearing blue and yellow help Curry and Draymond Green become a tougher out — or better — in a Western Conference that looks wide open?
Can Curry and Green get some loaded dice?
Because right now, it looks like the house is going to win.
Ignore the trade rumors and the “wait until next year” narratives. It’s referendum time in San Francisco.
It starts Thursday in Los Angeles, when the Warriors open the second half against the Clippers. For both the present and future, the Warriors need to figure out what they have on this roster ahead of the March 25 trade deadline. That’s not much time to get some definition.
Let’s start with the big issue with this roster: The Warriors need secondary scoring — someone to knock down the wide-open looks that Curry creates and to anchor the second unit offensively. In short, they need someone to take on the Klay Thompson role from the first two years of the dynasty.
Golden State’s hope was that Andrew Wiggins would step into that void this year, augmented by Kelly Oubre. That has not been the case. While Oubre was fantastic in the month of February, Wiggins plateaued and slipped a bit as the All-Star break neared.
All of the evidence of his seven prior years in the league point to Wiggins not taking a leap forward — he doesn’t play with enough force.
That puts a big dent in the team’s short- and long-term plans. Wiggins is seen as a team centerpiece. Right now, he’s playing at the same level as Harrison Barnes. Which is to say it’s good, but it always leaves you wanting for more.
Wiggins’ inability, to date, to up his game raises seriously the question if Wiggins — who, to his credit, has been stellar on defense this season — should still be part of this team long-term.
Oubre’s contract conundrum only adds to the complexity of the scenario. He’s a free agent at the end of this season and the Warriors can only offer him a 20 percent raise. Do the Warriors sell high or try to re-sign him and risk him walking elsewhere for more money and a starting role?
It’s funny how the need for five to ten more points per game can bubble up such existential issues, but that’s where the Warriors are.
The Warriors also need a backup point guard. Those missing points might be found there.
Brad Wanamaker, brought in to be a veteran stalwart, has played good defense and doesn’t turn the ball over much, but has provided little else to the Dubs and has squandered his role. Can he find his game after the break? If not, he might be looking for a European contract in the coming weeks.
The Warriors’ in-house alternative to Wanamaker is Jordan Poole, who is fresh off a confidence-boosting trip to the G League bubble in Orlando. Kerr promised before the break that Poole will see more minutes with the second unit moving forward, perhaps even playing at point guard, despite Kerr’s hesitancy to put the ball in his hands because of how turnover prone he is.
But as Poole showed in the getaway-day loss to the Suns before the break, he’s capable of doing what few members of the Warriors can: score, from distance, off the dribble.
Remember, though, Poole had a similar burst of positive play after a G League demotion last season. It didn’t last. Perhaps being a year older means this time, the form will stick. If it does, it would solve multiple problems for the Dubs. If it doesn’t the Warriors will likely have to reckon with the reality of another first-round draft bust.
The coaching staff will be in the spotlight as well. Amid a multitude of varying responsibilities — they’ve never had to develop a top prospect (much less a big man) while winning games with veterans before — they chose idealism over pragmatism. Can they strike a more balanced approach in the second half?
And if all of these questions come back negative in the coming weeks — if Wiggins doesn’t show an extra gear after the break, if a backup point guard doesn’t emerge, if James Wiseman’s head continues to spin — there will be a referendum on the Warriors’ front office.
Do they have the guile and creativity to improve this roster? Will they be willing to admit that their current plan to be the Spurs 2.0 isn’t going to happen? Will ownership be willing to spend the money to give Curry and Green a realistic shot at making postseason magic?
Yes, the Warriors are relevant once again, but is relevancy the goal?