Front office ponders its draft options
CHICAGO— The Warriors’ decision-makers started arriving in Chicago on Tuesday, eager to begin prospect interviews at the predraft combine and maybe even more intent on initiating trade talks.
The team is considering a number of options for its four draft picks, according to Warriors and league sources, including trading some or all of them for a current NBA starter such as Andre Iguodala, trading up in the draft to get a top-five prospect like Michael KiddGilchrist or even moving back in the draft to secure future assets.
“Having four picks is a tremendous situation to be in, and I think we can do some good things with it,” Warriors general manager Bob Myers said. “We’re
excited. We have a tremendous amount of assets, which puts us in good shape to explore a variety of opportunities. It’s up to us to make something of it.”
With three rookies (Klay Thompson, Charles Jenkins and Jeremy Tyler) under contract and the possibility of a fourth (Chris Wright) remaining with the team, Myers doesn’t want to use all four of this year’s picks — instead, he’d like to use a couple of the picks to trade for a proven commodity.
If healthy, the Warriors have four players inked into the starting lineup: point guard Stephen Curry, shooting guard Thompson, power forward David Lee and center Andrew Bogut. The Warriors say they want to re-sign small forward Brandon Rush, a restricted free agent, but they’d also like to upgrade their starting small-forward spot.
The Warriors thought they had worked out a trade last summer for Iguodala, but the deal, which would have brought the swingman west in exchange for Monta Ellis, was vetoed while the 76ers were in the process of being sold. Iguodala remains on the Warriors’ wish list, and they’ve expressed similar interest in Portland’s Nicolas Batum, Chicago’s Luol Deng, Memphis’ Rudy Gay, Indiana’s Danny Granger and Atlanta’s Josh Smith.
Portland has given every indication that it will match any offer sheet signed for Batum, a restricted free agent, and Chicago has balked at past trade discussions involving Deng. League sources, however, think Gay could be dealt in a salary-cap-salvaging move by Memphis, Indiana could move Granger to allow star-in-the-making Paul George to play his true position, and Atlanta could break up its consistently middling core by trading Smith.
The Warriors ideally would like to deal the No. 7 pick, one of their selections in the 30s and Dorell Wright for an upgrade at small forward. Then, they could use the remaining pick (No. 30 or 35) on a big man, like St. Bonaventure’s Andrew Nicholson, and have the mid-level exception to offer an experienced free-agent point guard.
The Warriors think Andre Miller might have played his way over midlevel money with a strong playoff showing, but they believe they have a good chance at landing Jason Kidd. If Deron Williams signs with Dallas, the Warriors can tempt Kidd with the mid-level exception and offer the Bay Area native a front-office job after he retires. They’d also consider Kirk Hinrich and Raymond Felton, though those players might hesitate at being regarded as backups.
There’s a good possibility that the Warriors’ Plan A doesn’t go exactly as planned, and the team said it doesn’t expect to finalize any moves until a week before the June 28 draft at the earliest. In the meantime, the Warriors will be discussing contingencies.
The Warriors see Kentucky’s Kidd-Gilchrist as the draft class’ best fit for their roster. The 6-foot-6, 216-pound forward is tough and athletic and provides all of the intangibles that make for a winning team. He doesn’t need the ball to make an impact on a game and probably would be the Warriors’ second-best defender from Day 1 in Oakland.
Kidd-Gilchrist is viewed by NBA talent evaluators as a top-five pick and by some as the draft’s second-best player behind Kentucky teammateAnthony Davis. The Warriors probably would have to trade all four of their picks to move Charlotte from No. 2 or Washington from No. 3 in order to land Kidd-Gilchrist, and there’s no guarantee that either team would move for selections 7, 30, 35 and 52.
That plan would leave the Warriors trying to fill the backup big-man and backup point-guard slots with only the mid-level exception. Team sources said, given those circumstances, they probably would go into the season with Jenkins as the backup point guard and hope to land Memphis’ Darrell Arthur, who is coming off a torn ACL; the Clippers’ Reggie Evans or the Nets’ Kris Humphries as their backup big man. They also could bring back Kwame Brown, because some in the Warriors’ front office believe Bogut could log some minutes at power forward.
The final two options don’t include trading for experienced players. If the Warriors find it tough to trade out of the seventh spot, they said they have no problem making the pick in what is considered a loaded draft.
The most logical option that provides value at No. 7 and fills a need is Ohio State big man Jared Sullinger, but NBA executives warned that the Warriors’ new staff isn’t about playing it safe. The Warriors could pick boom-or-bust prospects, like Connecticut’s Andre Drummond and Jeremy Lamb and Baylor’s Perry Jones III.
The Warriors also are considering moving back to get more value out of drafting playerswho have their attention, like Kentucky’s Terrence Jones or Illinois’ Meyers Leonard. In either of those draftonly plans, the Warriors could use their late picks on draft-and-stash international players or in trades to get future picks.