A look at the Warriors’ path through the West after the trade deadline
SAN FRANCISCO — The trade deadline has come and gone, and it looks as though the Warriors’ path back to the NBA Finals did not get much more difficult.
They’ll likely roll with what they have on the roster into the playoff push.
Despite some quiet rumblings that the Warriors — holding the second best-record in the West — might explore the market for another center, the team saw the noon PT deadline on Thursday pass without making a trade. Notable, too, is that their biggest competition atop the Western Conference didn’t make much noise, either.
“It’s one of the hardest parts of being in the NBA. When guys are released or traded, guys you grow close with,”
coach Steve Kerr said. “There is a sense of relief today. We love everyone that’s here and we have a great group. We’re all very excited that we can now move forward.”
The first-place Phoenix Suns made a marginal move to acquire Torrey Craig from Indiana for Jalen Smith and a future second-round pick, along with acquiring Aaron Holiday from Washington. The third-place Memphis Grizzlies stood pat, as did the struggling Lakers — weighed down by a immovable Russell Westbrook contract — along with the Denver Nuggets and Minnesota Timberwolves in the playoff picture.
Among the strongest contenders, the Dallas Mavericks made the most substantial moves, trading Kristaps Porzingis to Washington for Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans.
That other contending teams didn’t make a splashy trade makes the Warriors’ decision to roll with what they have more palatable. While adding depth at the center position might’ve been a safe move, the team seems assured that that depth will come when Draymond Green and James Wiseman return from their injuries.
Golden State was more likely to make a trade if Green’s return from back injury and 7-foot center Wiseman’s long-anticipated return from knee surgery became uncertain.
If Green and Wiseman hit a snag in their injury rehab after the deadline, the Warriors can still sift through the buyout market for a big — that deadline hitting on March 1. But the Warriors remain hopeful about Green’s timeline for return from a disc injury that’s sidelined him since Jan. 9; Green himself projected earlier this month a three-to-four week return to the court.
There is no set timeline for Wiseman’s return. The 20-year-old former No. 2 pick went through his first contact practice in Utah this week, a milestone in his recovery. But after 10 months off, it remains to be seen how Wiseman can be folded into the playoff race. Will he have minutes restrictions? Can he play high-leverage minutes in must-win games?
Plenty of questions surround Wiseman’s return. First, the team will need to set a return date.
Until both return, Kevon Looney remains the lone true center on the Warriors’ roster. Dealing with a quad contusion most recently, Looney has still managed to play all 55 games so far. The 26-year-old has established himself as a leader defensively, calling out plays and vacuuming up rebounds.
The Warriors play small ball when Looney isn’t on the court — an advantage in some matchups and disadvantage in others, including against center Hassan Whiteside in Wednesday’s loss against the Utah Jazz. But rookie Jonathan Kuminga’s emergence as an experimental small-ball five, along with Juan Toscano-Anderson as depth, can get them through the next few weeks.
Overall, the Warriors are well in position to keep up their pace near the top of the West. A move at the deadline could have created some depth, but ultimately the Warriors will likely run with what they have.