Warriors Trading No. 2 Pick To Spurs For LaMarcus Aldridge?
Warriors Trading No. 2 Pick To Spurs For LaMarcus Aldridge?
The Golden State Warriors are in the enviable position of being an extremely good basketball team with a very high pick in this year’s NBA Draft. There are obviously several different ways the organization can go with the No. 2 overall selection, but many believe they will ultimately end up trading it away.
This week, ESPN NBA insider Zach Lowe revealed that there are rumblings around the league regarding the San Antonio Spurs possibly trading LaMarcus Aldridge and the 11th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft for Golden State’s No. 2 pick.
“Someone within the league today texted me, ‘Hey, there’s a little buzz about No.2 to San Antonio for Lamarcus Aldridge and No. 11,’” Lowe reported on his The Lowe Post podcast on Thursday. “And obviously there’d have to be salary going out [for the Warriors]. And my response was, ‘That’s crazy. The Warriors should not do that. You don’t trade the No. 2 pick for LaMarcus Aldridge.’”
😲😲😲😲😲😲😲pic.twitter.com/poavzwmxGY
— /r/spurs (@redditspurs) November 6, 2020
The Warriors have made it no secret that they seek to add some size in the offseason, presumably to be able to compete with the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. Team star Stephen Curry said this much during a recent interview, when asked who the Warriors may draft this year.
“I think we could use some size,” he said. “But for the most part it’s just trying to fill out the roster and get us as much depth as possible.
“I like the position that we’re in with the assets that we got and the guys coming back off of injury. I think we’ll get it right, our front office has gotten it right over and over, and I expect nothing different coming back from this tough year we had.”
If bigs are what Golden State’s front office is seeking, then they could simply draft one in Memphis’ James Wiseman. However, if the goal is to acquire a more proven commodity, then obviously Aldridge makes sense (as does stealing away Dwight Howard).
Yikes. https://t.co/IxdXWJyld2
— Game 7 (@game7__) November 6, 2020
Aldridge averaged 18.9 points and 7.4 rebounds this year, his lowest numbers since 2009. Even with the declines, though — that sort of production wouldn’t be bad if not for the fact that the Spurs signed him to a massive, two-year, $50 million contract in 2019. For an average of $25 million annually, they were no doubt hoping for a bit more return on investment.
Still, fit is everything, and it’s just a matter of whether the Warriors’ front office feels like Aldridge would fit with its current batch of stars.
If the answer to that question is no, then there is no shortage of options for them to pursue as far as their No. 2 pick goes.
Don’t worry everybody, Bronny is fine. https://t.co/1o3FyJgFZ2
— Game 7 (@game7__) November 5, 2020
They’ve been linked to a deal involving the New York Knicks, one centered around Orlando Magic big man Nikola Vucevic, one that would net them Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal, and one that would send Jrue Holiday to The Bay.
Plus they could always, you know, just use the draft pick themselves and start planning for the future.
One way or another, the Warriors will have plenty of potential paths heading into this year’s draft. What will they ultimately end up doing? Time will tell.
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A graduate from the University of Texas, Anthony Amador has been credentialed to cover the Houston Texans, Dallas Cowboys, San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks and high school games all over the Lone Star State. Currently, his primary beats are the NBA, MLB, NFL and UFC.
