You don’t have to wait years of documentaries and context to sort this out: Saturday night’s events will go down as the opening moment of the postseason at the starting point of a significant part of Golden State Warriors history.
Preliminary analysis: Not good yet! (But check back in a week for the final verdict.)
Klay Thompson is set for free agency and — barring a dramatic mood swing — the Warriors and Thompson are more than ready to leave the Bay Area. So prepared, an NBA source indicated this weekend that some cordial greetings were shared between Klay and senior members of the Warriors organization.
And Paul George, the Warriors’ home run target this offseason, opted out of the final year of his contract with the LA Clippers and became an unrestricted free agent, essentially cutting off any real avenues for the Warriors. The cap room to sign as a free agent.
This comes after intense negotiations between the Warriors, George and the Clippers ended on Saturday afternoon at the contract deadline for George, and after the Warriors believed — several times — they were close to landing the 34-year-old small forward. said the sources of the group.
The Warriors agreed to give George a four-year extension upon arrival. They believed that the Clippers had presented several trade variations that they could and would accept. Stephen Curry and Draymond Green were 100 percent on board. George has given strong indications that he wants to join the Warriors. But the Clippers never agreed to any version of a trade, and now George is a free agent and essentially out of reach from the Warriors.
This should go down a lot before free agency starts Sunday. And the current big board calculation is that the Warriors are about to lose one of their three dynastic players and one of the most famous athletes in Bay Area history, and they haven’t found the two-way wing they’ve been chasing. Andrew Wiggins has faced others in trade talks, and now they must decide whether to guarantee Chris Paul’s $30 million contract for next season and move him in a trade.
No net profit. A basic disadvantage. Too much remains. And at issue is Curry’s prime finish.
The Warriors don’t have the cap space to sign Paul George, who is set to become a free agent along with Luka Doncic. (Jerome Myron/USA Today)
Here’s a point-by-point look at what’s happened over the past few days and how this will shape what the Warriors will try to do next:
• Any potential PG13 trade between the Warriors and Clippers was always going to be complicated, but Warriors executives thought they solved the mystery. From what I’ve heard, some combination of Wiggins, CP3, Jonathan Kuminga or Moses Moody (but not all) and a future first round pick have been discussed with the Clippers.
There were versions that limited the Clippers’ long-term financial liability. There were versions that added future benefits. I’m told the Warriors may not match Wiggins and Cuminga to any offer, but it didn’t make it that far anyway. If this is what seals the deal… who knows.
My understanding is that the money issue weighs heavily on the Clippers side. If PG13 leaves as a free agent, they get nothing… but they get off the second apron and have more mobility.
• If the Warriors had packaged Kuminga for George, that would have been a disaster in itself. The Warriors would be giving away their most valuable young player for an injury-plagued player who is owed more than $260 million for the next 5 years, putting the Warriors under the luxury tax.
But PG13 would be a speedy and elite 1B scoring option next to Curry, the most advanced role the Warriors have had in years, and he could draw most of the toughest perimeter defense assignments. Who will step into those shoes for the Warriors now? Maybe Kuminga will get some. Maybe Moody. Maybe Brandin Podzimski too. It’s all a work in progress. The Boston Celtics have proven once again that playoff series are won by strong two-way wings, and the Warriors are still very needy in that category. That is why they put so much effort into George.
• Thompson will have time after so many full-blown rumors about his impressive legacy with the Warriors, and he deserves every one of them. Game 6 in Oklahoma City is probably worth 100 by itself. Returning to hit free throws – and back on defense! – He should get a thousand more memories after tearing his ACL in the 2019 Finals.
Looking back, many of his actions and emotions over the last few months of last season were signs that he was probably ready to move on, from his frequent news conference moments to his struggles to adjust. After the final regular season game at the Chase Center, his importance on the court as he walked around the locker room asked his teammates to get on the boat with him.
CP3 and Moody take it on him.Because it was a partial honor to ride on that boat with Thompson, but I also thought, because they knew it was important to him that night.
• Thompson didn’t like his experience last season and said so. most of the time. He didn’t like being moved to the bench for a few games behind Podzimski. He didn’t like our questions about the future. He has not relished the national spotlight on his occasional struggles, including his 0-for-10 shooting night in a play-in loss to the Sacramento Kings. He Really He didn’t like that the Warriors prioritized figuring out how to improve the roster this offseason instead of getting him back.
All in all, I think Thompson doesn’t like competing against his other era self before his two major leg injuries when he could guard anyone and turn any game into NBA shooting history. He wanted a fresh start. He’s going to get one. He wants to come to Chess Center with his new team and defeat the Warriors. Maybe not bitter, maybe a little bitter, but it will be fun to watch.
• Thompson may not be a starter if he stays with the Warriors this season. It was going to be Podziemski. Oh, Moody. Or someone else. I’m not sure Thompson wants to go through this, and I’m guessing the Warriors don’t like it either. It seems like a cold conclusion to this incredible period, but it was inevitable.
The Warriors won’t be better without Thompson. They will miss his shooting, his personality, his wry sense of humor and everything. He will have a statue outside the arena. He always gets a warm welcome wherever Warriors fans are. Yes, the Warriors will miss him. But they’re going to get something in a sign-and-trade deal, Thompson’s approval, when he leaves, and they probably won’t be all the worse for it. They tend to be younger and perhaps more athletic.
And we’ll see what you can add in the next week or so.
• The Warriors could use the CP3 contract as a trade-variation version – negotiate with Paul to make the guarantee any amount mutually agreeable and use it to balance that trade, if there’s a good deal.
If the Warriors can’t get a trade, they could release CP3, go under the apron and luxury tax, and possibly under the cap line (depending on what kind of money they get back in a Thompson sign and trade). You can see what else you can get for Wiggins. As it stands, they would have a taxpayer middle-class exception of $5.2 million and could get a non-taxpayer $12.9 million if they move Wiggins and get much less in return.
• To close this out, I’ll use one more Thompson quote from that seminal end-of-the-era news conference. Thompson was asked for his reaction when he told Curry, Draymond and Steve Kerr how much they wanted him back. Again, Thompson said those words back in April, but they feel especially apt now.
“It means a lot,” Thompson said. “I mean we’ve been through highs and lows. Losing championships, winning championships, missing the playoffs, we’ve been through it all together, so this means a lot. It makes me grateful to have the moments I spent with them. Like, that was a very historic thing. “
Yes, it was. Past Tense Present.
(Top photo of Klay Thompson: Rocky Widner / NBA via Getty Images)