Mike Dunleavy’s first NBA draft as Warriors general manager had to have earned him trust within the front office, coaching staff, players and fans. Who he added – Brandin Podziemski and Trayce Jackson-Davis – and where he selected them – No. 19 and No. 57 – gave Golden State its best draft class in more than a decade.
The Warriors in Dunleavy’s second go-around have one pick, No. 52 overall, in the 2024 NBA Draft. They also only owned one pick, No. 19, going into last year’s draft. To get Jackson-Davis with the second-to-last pick in the draft, the Warriors essentially sent Patrick Baldwin Jr. and cash to the Washington Wizards on draft night for the 57th pick.
Using a similar tactic this year would make sense, too. Only this strategy is one they’ve used more often to varying degrees.
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Then-Warriors general manager Bob Myers in 2016 sent the Milwaukee Bucks $2.4 million for the No. 38 pick to take shooting guard Patrick McCaw out of UNLV. McCaw made his NBA debut on his 21st birthday. At that young age as a rookie, he had 18 points, five assists, three rebounds, three steals and was a plus-19 against the San Antonio Spurs in Game 2 of the 2016 Western Conference Finals.
There were flashes. There also was a contract snafu that shortened his time to two years with the Warriors. McCaw’s NBA career never took off.
The Warriors again moved up the next year in the 2017 draft. They sent the Chicago Bulls $3.4 million for the Oregon Duck Jordan Bell. Bell’s best season of his five-year NBA career was as a rookie, by far. He played 57 games and started 13. Bell averaged 14.2 minutes per game in the conference finals, and 13.5 minutes when the Warriors swept the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Bell averaged 5.8 points and 3.3 rebounds in the 2018 Finals. That’s a win.
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Two years later, the Warriors made an infamous trade in the second round.
Their Alen Smailagic infatuation ended by giving the New Orleans Pelicans $1 million plus second-round picks in 2021 and 2023. Smiley played 29 games. The experiment, if that’s the right way to put it, didn’t work.
Neither did trading up for Ryan Rollins in 2022, though he didn’t get much of a shot. The Warriors traded the No. 51 pick and $2 million to the Atlanta Hawks to move up nine spots for the guard from Toledo. A handful of people were very high on Rollins, but he had to get foot surgery early on, played 12 games as a rookie and was sent to the Wizards as part of the Chris Paul deal.
The process just didn’t meet the results. Golden State’s thinking shouldn’t be seen as a negative here.
This year’s draft is considered one of the worst in years. There are no clear stars, or even one obvious star from a prospect standpoint. But rotation players can be found. Perhaps more in the thirties than fifties.
Young, cheap talent is a must for the Warriors. Are they going to find another TJD in the second round for the second straight year? Probably not. But in a year the draft is down, your chances are higher filling a need near the top of the second round compared to the bottom.
If Dunleavy and the Warriors identify a prospect they really like, there’s no reason to hope something falls in their lap and it all works out.
Maybe it’s Oakland native Keshad Johnson, a 23-year-old forward who broke out as a shooter during his fifth year in college. Baylor senior wing Jalen Bridges, 23, could be a perfect 3-and-D player. Cameron Christie is only 19, but the Warriors might love his 3-point shot enough to go for it. The intensity of Kevin McCullar Jr., 23, feels like an easy fit. Pelle Larson, a 23-year-old senior wing who shot 42.1 percent from three last season for Arizona, checks a lot of boxes for the Warriors.
None of these prospects might still be on the board at the Warriors’ current position.
A season where the Warriors weren’t a playoff team might have to force an offseason gamble or two. Even again taking a chance on opening your wallet and positioning yourself higher in the draft.
The small stuff matters, too.
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