Why Mike Dunleavy and the Warriors should consider trading – NBC Sports Bay Area & California

Mike Dunleavy’s first NBA draft as Warriors general manager had to earn him the trust of 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 second-round Dunleavy Warriors have one pick, No. 52 overall, in the 2024 NBA Draft. They also only had one pick, number 19, in 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 also make sense. Only this strategy is the one they used more often to varying degrees.

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 plus-19 against the San Antonio Spurs in Game 2 of the 2016 Western Conference Finals.

There were flashes. There was also a contract issue that cut his stay with the Warriors to two years. McCaw’s NBA career never took off.

The Warriors moved up again the following year in the 2017 draft. They sent $3.4 million to the Chicago Bulls for Oregon Duck Jordan Bell. By far Bell’s best season in his five-year NBA career was as a rookie. He played in 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.

Two years later, the Warriors made an infamous second-round trade.

Their Alen Smailagic craze ended with him giving the New Orleans Pelicans $1 million plus second-round picks in 2021 and 2023. Smiley played in 29 games. The experiment, if that’s the right way to put it, didn’t work.

He also didn’t trade for Ryan Rollins in 2022, even though he didn’t have much luck. The Warriors traded the No. 51 pick and $2 million to the Atlanta Hawks to move up nine spots for the Toledo guard. A handful of people were very fond of Rollins, but he had to have foot surgery early on, played 12 games as a rookie, and was sent to the Wizards in the Chris Paul deal.

The process simply did not produce results. Golden State’s thinking shouldn’t be taken 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 prospects perspective. But rotation players can be found. Maybe more in the thirties than in the fifties.

Young, cheap talent is a must for the Warriors. Will they find another TJD in the second round for the second year in a row? Probably not. But in a year the draft is down, your chances are greater of filling a need near the top of the second round than near the bottom.

If Dunleavy and the Warriors identify a prospect they really like, there’s no reason to hope that something will fall into their lap and everything will work out.

It may be Oakland native Keshad Johnson, a 23-year-old forward who got his start as a shooting guard during his fifth year in college. Baylor senior guard Jalen Bridges, 23, could be a perfect 3-and-D player. Cameron Christie is only 19, but the Warriors might like his 3-point shooting enough to make a move. The intensity of 23-year-old Kevin McCullar Jr. makes it look easy. 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 may 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. Again, take a chance on opening your wallet and positioning yourself higher in the draft.

Little things matter too.

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