Warriors fumble, whiff, clang
The two quickest dismissals in the NBA, now that they don't let Joey Crawford in the building, reference the 82-game season, and enhanced draft picks as reward for winning NBA games. Non-starters, each.
NBA players and owners will not abandon an 82-game season. Recently, they've added even more games in December and April. Someday we might move games around in a bid to increase rest, the baseball miniseries but all year, but any case considering fewer than 82 contests will not be heard.
Those games in December and April? It is often suggested the NBA should extend larger lottery odds or outright draft picks to teams winning a certain way in March and April, or for the victors of any in-season tournament. Not a chance. NBA veterans will not ball for next season's supplanters, kindly leave this notion out of any conception created to deter tanking.
NBA players, despite decades of intrateam animus, do not ask for teammates to be traded. Yet they'll sure as shit go on record about future first-round picks. Demanding their team trade any incoming-years-from-now draft prospect for veteran help any vet's team would gladly render outcoming, and immediately. NBA players want their teams' draft picks traded for players their age who do not play their position.
The Warriors are 23-19, No. 8 in the West, No. 7 2021 pick Jonathan Kuminga demanded his trade the second 1-15-26 hit, we'll talk about Golden State's recent picks-or-vets decisions for many number of years. This is not the Warrior track – so-so Warrior record, trade demands from so-so Warrior players – we trained ourselves for.
The Warrior front office owned two lottery picks back in the 2021 NBA draft but Warriors vets concluded they needed veteran help, not another lottery pick, certainly not two. Not another youngster on a roster replete with young projects James Wiseman, Juan Toscano-Anderson, Jordan Poole and (Golden State thought) Nico Mannion, maybe Eric Paschall.
Golden State missed the 2021 playoffs, falling in a Play-In many presumed they'd coast through. The loss left players snappy, champing for 2021-22 before 2020-21 concluded.
GSW was due a 2021 lottery pick from the sixth-worst team in 2020-21, Minnesota, the pick dropped to No. 7. Golden State owned its own 2021 pick at No. 14. Warrior vets wondered if the front office could move those selections onward, for 28-year Wizards All-Star Bradley Beal. The Warrior front office countered with Josh Giddey, James Bouknight.
Remind me never to heed let alone follow restaurant opinions from anyone on the Golden State Warriors. What is "Reconsidered Luxe Americana," anyway?
