In case you missed it, the Golden State Warriors made a questionable trade not too long ago.
In 2008, they traded for then New Jersey Nets point guard Marcus Williams. In that trade they gave up a conditional 2012 first round pick. That pick was then shipped to Utah in the Deron Williams trade.
Clearly when the Warriors made that trade they planned on being a playoff team or really awful because the pick is top seven protected, meaning if they get picks one-seven, they can keep it, otherwise it goes to Utah.
Right now they are slotted to pick seventh in the draft, so if anyone in the lottery picking 8-14 leap frogs into the top three, the Warriors are in some trouble.
According to Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle, the Warriors would really like to keep that pick and are taking steps to keep that pick no matter what.
The Warriors are in ongoing discussions with Utah in hopes of securing their lottery pick, regardless of conditions, before the ping pong balls can decide their fate Wednesday.
Simmons goes on to explain that the Warriors have about a 12 percent chance of getting a top three pick and about a 72 percent of keeping their pick. Despite those good odds, owners Joe Lacob and Peter Guber obviously know the Warriors have arguably the worst lottery luck in the NBA (the Crossover Chronicles crew is willing to listen to arguments for other teams having worse lottery luck).
I like what they are doing because a top-seven or even top-10 pick in the draft this season means you get at least a regular rotation player and you get them for cheap. Guys like Harrison Barnes, Perry Jones III, Jared Sullinger, Tyler Zeller, Terrence Jones and John Henson could all be available in the 7-10 range and could all come in and contribute for the Warriors. And they would cost an average of about $2.5 million for the first four years of his career.
This draft specifically involves a number of guys like Zeller, Barnes and Sullinger who have very little bust potential. The Warriors would be smart to work something out now.
Lacob has said in the past that they would prefer to secure their own pick now because trading back in to the lottery, especially the top 10, would be more costly than their current course. Giving up a shooter like Dorell Wright to keep the pick would be worth it for the Warriors since Wright doesn’t want to be there anymore and might give Utah incentive to pull the trigger on the deal considering how badly Utah needs shooters.
Still, what are the odds the Warriors pick the one bust in the draft? History tells us it’s more likely than not.
