Warriors GM plans to make two lottery picks
Will finalize their big board and draft plans and consider all possibilities of how to use their picks Thursday
As Golden State Warriors general manager Bob Myers began the final week of the predraft process Monday, he received a handful of phone calls from rival general managers to discuss trade ideas that have not come up in prior conversations.
Holding the Nos. 7 and 14 picks in Thursday’s NBA Draft, Golden State is open to trading one or both picks for the right return. As of now, however, Myers expects to make both selections.
“As of 2 o’clock today, yeah (that’s the plan),” Myers said during Monday’s conference call with reporters before adding a caveat. “But here’s the problem with that question — at 2:45, that can change.”
As Myers suggests, things can change quickly in the NBA. As organizations prepare for Thursday, Myers and other decisionmakers will make more calls. New deals for new players will be discussed and new opportunities
will be weighed. Between now and Thursday, the Warriors will finalize their big board and draft plans and consider all possibilities for how to use their picks.
To trade them, Myers said, “It would have to be something material. I don’t think we would move them for something marginal.”
The biggest names have been widely circulated: Portland’s Damian Lillard, Philadelphia’s Ben Simmons and Washington’s Bradley Beal.
Lillard and Simmons appear to be long shots. Lillard because he has not requested a trade and likely won’t before Thursday’s draft. Simmons because, as ESPN’S Adrian Wojnarowski reported, the Warriors simply aren’t interested and prefer to wait instead for Beal’s decision.
There’s a growing belief in the NBA that if Beal decides to request a trade from the Wizards, he would do so before the draft. Certainly, Beal represents the sort of “material” return worth parting with two lottery picks.
As the Athletic’s Marcus Thompson reported last week, Beal is atop Golden State’s wish list.
The reason why is obvious: Beal, who finished second behind only Stephen Curry in scoring last season at 31.3 points per game, would give Golden
State another All-star and the offensive firepower unrivaled by any team outside of Brooklyn. A team with Curry, Beal, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green would have the talent to vault to the top rung of the Western Conference.