- 2 days ago
Willard and Dibs debate if the Warriors will attach first round picks to Kristaps Porzingis in order to bring something of value back in return?
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00:00Don't let all this get it twisted.
00:02Steph plays Luka tonight on national TV and on 95.7 The Game.
00:08Like, there's no wet blanket here, I don't feel like.
00:13I just, sometimes I wonder if the Warrior fan base isn't really,
00:20like we're so caught up in the magic of Steph
00:23that it sometimes gets hard to see the realities that are facing the organization.
00:32And Steph is 38 and a half years old and Jimmy is hurt.
00:36And Moses is hurt.
00:37And Kristaps is sick.
00:40And so here we are.
00:42And so, you know, the everything for Steph narrative, it's interesting.
00:47Here's one spot where I will kind of defend the organization's position.
00:52I think they've made a lot of mistakes that have led them here.
00:55And then I think some of these things were inevitable because of age.
01:00But if you ask me right now,
01:02when's the next time the Warriors have a legit shot
01:06to build a roster that's truly a top six seed?
01:11It's not this year.
01:12It's the year after.
01:14It just is.
01:15That's how I see it.
01:17And I'm watching their moves and I'm sort of thinking that they might agree.
01:21And whether that whether they bear blame for that for offseason maneuvering
01:27that wasn't aggressive enough or if that was strategic because the moment Jimmy Butler
01:31got hurt, they realized like the next time that we're actually potentially going to get
01:37$55 million worth of basketball player is the 27-28 season.
01:43They can't get that this year.
01:45Like you can't have it.
01:45Well, they can trade him and get that.
01:48Can they?
01:49Sure.
01:50Trades are hard.
01:51Trades are really hard.
01:52And especially with injured players who make a lot of money.
01:54Trades are hard.
01:55But you've got, I mean, you've got players out there who are on expiring deals who are
02:00making a lot of money who aren't probably as good as Jimmy when healthy, but they're people
02:05who could come in and help you now.
02:06And, you know, the whole idea of trading for somebody who is going to be somebody who makes
02:11a lot of money going forward.
02:13And I can't help but think about Carl Anthony Towns and his little thing with New York where,
02:17you know, James Dolan doesn't want to pay him the extension.
02:20And so they're in a little bit of a standoff.
02:23And right now they are in a spot where they're 0-1 and they're on their way to maybe 0
02:28-82.
02:29It's panic time.
02:30They won't go 82-0.
02:31And so I do think about, like, that situation as an example where, you know, Carl Anthony
02:37Towns wants to get paid and they may not want to pay him.
02:40So that might be a guy.
02:42And I'm sure there are other stars out there who are in a similar spot.
02:46I think that's a great example.
02:47But you can't get that guy this offseason.
02:51But who knows?
02:51I don't know who you can get in February.
02:54So in other words.
02:55You might get him at the deadline.
02:56That's what I mean.
02:57That's February.
02:57Like, who's going to get ticked next?
03:01That's kind of the game the Warriors are playing, isn't it?
03:05And the idea is be ready.
03:08Be ready.
03:10Like, I don't know what's around the bend.
03:13And that's not always a fun to-do list.
03:16I've joked many times with you.
03:18That's the to-do list I gave the lovely Christy when she was preparing for our wedding last year.
03:24She's running around like crazy doing all this stuff.
03:26And I'm like, yeah, it's hectic, isn't it?
03:28She goes, what the hell?
03:29What's hectic for you?
03:30What's your to-do list?
03:31I said, be ready.
03:33That's my list.
03:34And therefore, you can point and send me anywhere and I'll do it.
03:38That's the Warriors to-do list right now.
03:40It's not fun.
03:42It doesn't give fans great guidance and direction.
03:45And it at times is going to feel really frustrating because I do think, no different than Jordan Poole,
03:52it makes a team look stupid.
03:55It makes them look stupid.
03:58Because they're sitting there either with assets that they don't really want
04:02or they spin those assets out to get something back that you really don't want.
04:08But you don't know when the chain link fence is going to get to something that really matters.
04:15I heard someone call in earlier and make this point.
04:17Wait, Kevin Durant became D'Angelo Russell.
04:20Yuck.
04:21That became Andrew Wiggins.
04:23Oh.
04:26So, Jonathan to Chris Stapps.
04:28Well, okay, no thanks.
04:30Chris Stapps to what's next?
04:31I don't know.
04:32Maybe it goes the route of Chris Paul and you get a big nothing burger.
04:36Or maybe you don't.
04:38Maybe you don't.
04:39Maybe you get your next Andrew Wiggins who suddenly for three months becomes the best player on earth
04:44and wins your ring.
04:45Like, I don't know, but it's kind of the game in this collective bargaining agreement
04:51and the way that these, the aprons and all this, kind of the game that you have to play.
04:55And the Warriors are more ready for what's going to happen next probably than any other team in the NBA
05:02right now.
05:03That's not exciting until it becomes exciting.
05:05Just based on, like, salaries and contracts and the rest of it.
05:08And I do think that that's where I look at the Chris Stapps contract and think, all right, it's a
05:13good deal if he plays.
05:15But even if he doesn't play, it's still a pretty good deal because it becomes much more tradable for a
05:19team
05:20that might just want to, like, write somebody off.
05:22And I'm looking at Michael Porter Jr., who's making $40 million in Brooklyn.
05:28And, you know, Brooklyn is still a year away from being a year away from being a year away.
05:33And so, you know, they might want to, you know, get some salary in and be able to write off
05:38that.
05:38And if the Warriors have to attach a pick to get him, I think that he is in a spot
05:43where he can come in and help you.
05:45And if you re-sign him, he's the kind of player that can help this team.
05:48Attach a pick.
05:49Interesting idea.
05:51Right.
05:51Would you like to hear the latest from Shams?
05:53Would love to.
05:53All right.
05:54Shams, NBA Today, ESPN.
05:56They're bracing for scenarios, whether that's a trade, whether that's a potential buyout as well.
06:01And so how does a trade machination work, right?
06:03Because if he's contemplating leaving the game, how does it work?
06:06Well, he's on basically an expiring contract right now.
06:09So they could use that from a contractual perspective at about $20 million.
06:14He's got a $3 million partial for next year.
06:17They can incentivize teams with draft picks.
06:19They've got a pool of assets as well.
06:20Potentially take on money in a deal, potentially, if they're giving up for a big-name player.
06:26But right now, they've got $90 million sideline between Christos Porzingis, Jimmy Butler, and Moses Moody.
06:33And this scenario with Christos Porzingis we'll see play out in the coming weeks.
06:37Okay, so, like, it's opening night.
06:38I get it.
06:39You can be disappointed.
06:40I'm disappointed.
06:42Like, this is not what you want to be talking about on opening night.
06:46And I totally get that.
06:48And be ready does feel like you're like, well, let's just throw a Hail Mary.
06:52Who knows?
06:52Maybe it'll get caught.
06:54But to me, when you're watching a front office work, when you can get really upset is when they throw
07:04those young players out the door for these salary slot deals.
07:08And then that young player becomes awesome.
07:12And so, I do remind Warrior fans, and I think it's important in the conversation, you can be disappointed that
07:19Jordan Poole turned into a State Farm commercial and then nothing.
07:24And you can be totally disappointed that the Warriors mismanaged Jonathan Kaminga's situation enough to where he has become a
07:34player who is ill and may never play again.
07:37That's totally fair.
07:39But the extra anger for me would be reserved if those two players had gone on and become great NBA
07:46players somewhere else that you really would want back on this team.
07:50And that's not what has happened with either of those players.
07:53Well, it's early for Kaminga.
07:54It is early.
07:54I mean, we're told he'll start in Minnesota.
07:57And one team has already said no thanks after they got their look.
08:00At that price point, for sure.
08:01And so, yeah, he goes to, you know, Minnesota, and he makes about a fourth of what he was set
08:06to make.
08:07I was going to say, they could have brought him back for half.
08:09They could have brought him back for a third, but they chose not to.
08:12And I do believe that part of it is his agent, who is an absolute moron, in my opinion.
08:18I think that he's got no idea what he's doing, and he completely botched this situation.
08:23And then you go to Atlanta, and you have him there, and, you know, you go from Atlanta, and now
08:28he's making, what, $6 million in Minnesota?
08:31And, you know, the word is, he's going to start, and I guess we'll find out here coming up in
08:36about an hour and a half.
08:37Yeah, I'm sure he will.
08:39I don't know if he'll start all year.
08:41I mean, you've got to play well.
08:42You can't just start.
08:45It's got to go well.
08:46It's a whole new team.
08:47And I wonder if he even starts tonight.
08:48I mean.
08:49We'll see.
08:50And the lineup will be out coming up pretty soon.
08:52But, again, this is not about, you know, Kaminga's agent, and it's not even about, like, the way that the
08:58Warriors botched the pick.
08:59Because I do believe they botched the pick.
09:01They botched the pick, sure.
09:02They botched the Wiseman pick as well.
09:04And, you know, maybe they could have developed him more.
09:06That's not even the point.
09:07The point for me is the Chris Tapps-Porzinga thing, where you brought him in, and you tried it out,
09:13and he played about a dozen and a half games.
09:16And then you had a choice of either let him go for nothing or sign him to a tradable, team
09:22-friendly deal and hope that the pots would be put at bay, which so far it's not.
09:29And so now you're looking at the guy who the word is may not want to play basketball again.
09:33So he's not only an expiring deal, he's an expiring player.
09:37Like, he's not going to play anymore.
09:39He may not be able to play anymore.
09:40Right.
09:41I don't want to say he doesn't want to play.
09:42I think he wants to play.
09:43No, but as an acquiring team, you're thinking, okay, I mean, we could acquire this, and it's 19 million plus
09:50three more million, and yeah.
09:51It's a piece of paper.
09:53Right.
09:53It's a poker chip.
09:55And maybe he never even reports to that team that acquires it.
09:58It doesn't even matter.
09:59I don't know that he's going to report to the Warriors this year.
10:03He came by and said hello, but they're not going to, I mean, they were very clear.
10:07He's not even going to be with the team.
10:09So he's not, he doesn't need to report anywhere.
10:15So, yeah, it sucks.
10:17It super sucks, for sure.
10:19And hopefully what I would love to see is Steph put up 30 and Yaxo put up 20 and the
10:25Warriors win on the road tonight in L.A.
10:27And it's going to make a lot of this, you know, for a moment at least, kind of get tucked
10:32away.
10:32Like what the Warriors really need more than anything else after an offseason like this, they need to play basketball,
10:39man.
10:40So they need tonight.
10:42This is, that's what's good about this.
10:44They didn't, they did nothing to excite the fan base this offseason.
10:47Maybe they didn't even have the opportunity to.
10:49Their roster is still totally broken.
10:53And, and it's just one fearful take after another all offseason long.
10:58They need the season to start.
11:00Same way the Niners did.
11:02Oh, they're old and decrepit.
11:03Nothing good's going to happen.
11:05Yeah.
11:05Then you win six in a row.
11:06And boy, well, I'll shut that up.
11:08So let's see.
11:09Well, and the Giants too.
11:10And then you got swept by the Yankees.
11:12And then, you know, your manager didn't really, you know, have a grasp.
11:16And you had no bullpen.
11:17And there you go.
11:18You lose almost 100 games.
11:20That's the two ways that it could go.