It’s been a weird, wild week for the Golden State Warriors, and one which brings into the spotlight their decisions this offseason.
Golden State opted to let Gary Payton II walk in free agency, but retained James Wiseman, effectively a one-for-one proposition given the salaries involved.
After finding out about a core muscle injury that could sideline Payton II until the playoffs, the four-team trade deadline deal that sent Wiseman to Detroit and brought Payton II back to the Bay nearly collapsed.
But the Warriors followed through on the trade, and it begs questions about their offseason approach and where they stand in the West.
Andcape’s Marc J. Spears joined Papa & Lund on Tuesday to discuss the situation.
He sees the Warriors right now as a likely play-in team, while the Suns, having added Durant, will be “unstoppable.”
“They’re scary, man,” Spears said. “If they’re healthy, I don’t think there’s anybody that can beat them. I don’t. Period. I think they’re just going to be that good.”
The trade makes you wonder if the Warriors should have moved for Durant this offseason when he requested a trade.
While Spears said he wasn’t sure if they could have gotten a deal done, they certainly had a plethora of young assets, with Wiseman’s value likely higher then than it was at the deadline.
“If you look back, like, I love your farm, it looks like your farms growing some great fruit and vegetables, but trade all that produce, trade all those vegetables for Kevin Durant, man,” Spears said. “And I get it because I was there too. I love their young guys. And Poole is amazing and Kuminga is gonna be great. But he’s Kevin freaking Durant. Like, I would have put my chips in and got him.”
Spears said he realizes that we have the benefit of hindsight in looking back at not making that trade, or attempting to, but that it’s still a mistake.
It’s worse when considering that the Warriors “didn’t get close to the value” for Wiseman that they could have. Wiseman’s future, Spears thinks, is bright.
“And watch. He’s gonna go to Detroit. He’s gonna play,” Spears said. “There’s not going to be any pressure. They want him to start. They’re gonna give him an opportunity to make mistakes. And he’s gonna flourish there and I think he’s gonna reach his potential there.”
While Gary Payton II could help come playoff time, that assumes the Warriors will get there and make it past a potential play-in round.
The whole proposition is a bit of a head scratcher after the way the Warriors handled Payton II’s free agency.
Spears said that there were six offers on the table for GPII, with the Warriors offering the least for him. Now, they have him on the deal Portland gave him. Only time will tell whether Payton II can help Golden State in the regular season.
Listen to the full interview below. You can listen to every KNBR interview on our podcast page at knbr.com/podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Catch Papa & Lund weekdays from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. on KNBR 104.5 / 680 and streaming live on KNBR.com.
