For the first time under Steve Kerr’s tenure, the Warriors have been eliminated from the Western Conference playoffs.
Now, there are many questions which need swift answering. General manager Bob Myers’ contract is up. Draymond Green has a player option worth $27.59 million. Klay Thompson is on the last year of his deal and set to make $43.22 million. Jordan Poole’s four-year, $128 million extension kicks in starting next season.
And questions persist about the two-timeline situation which has not gone according to plan.
Per Anthony Slater and Shams Charania of The Athletic, Golden State still has an “… internal belief that this established, aging core can compete for titles because Stephen Curry remains a top-five player in the NBA and both Draymond Green and Klay Thompson aren’t showing signs of a steep decline.”
That leaves major questions for the rest of the roster, especially as luxury tax implications head towards astronomical levels, with a $400 million bill if everyone is retained.
Slater and Charani report that the Warriors intend to keep Green, and, “… discuss a new multi-year contract with Green, either via an opt in and extend or an entirely new deal after an opt out.”
If he sticks around, it begs major questions of Jonathan Kuminga, who fell completely out of the rotation in the Lakers series but has show major signs of improvement this season.
There is a chance Golden State could move him, per Charania:
The Warriors and Kuminga’s representatives are expected to discuss his future this offseason, league sources say. Golden State will need to decide whether Kuminga will receive a full-time role moving forward, and, if not, league sources say the No. 7 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft will want to be somewhere he can play more.
Jordan Poole, obviously, is another name that could be gone, and Charania reports s the “likeliest” option if the Warriors want to cut costs.
He had a woeful season and looked completely lost at certain times in this playoff stretch. Keeping him would set the Warriors into an outrageous luxury tax situation and prevent them from using the mid-level exception.
Slater and Charania report there is “still hesitancy” to move Poole because he’s just 24, coming off a 20.4 points per game season, and it might not be wise to trade him at his lowest value.
All that said, the Warriors will likely have to cut costs one way or another, and Poole has the highest and most logical capacity to do that. Changes will have to come for this team to make another title run.
