While it’s been clear for a while where this was going, it became official on Wednesday: Lauri Markkanen signed a contract extension with the Jazz and will not be available for exchange until after the following season.
Where do the Warriors go next to get a shot creator besides Stephen Curry?
While they look around for smaller moves, Golden State isn’t moving on to the other big names available like Brandon Ingram from the Pelcians or Zach LaVine from the Bulls, Shams Charania, Tony Jones and Anthony Slater report to The Athletic.
According to team sources, the Warriors have 14 players under contract for next season and have no problem going into training camp and the regular season as it stands. However, they are expected to be more actively looking for smaller deals than usual in August and September. They have shown no interest in entering the Zach LaVine or Brandon Ingram markets.
Two quick thoughts on this.
LaVine and Ingram are All-Star level players and bucket-getters, but they are the poster children for how the new collective bargaining agreement has teams rethinking how they construct their rosters. LaVine is getting $138 million over the next three seasons ($46 million per season on average), and Ingram has one year left on his $36 million contract but wants a max extension after that. In a world where the new CBA effectively allows teams to have two max or near-max players if they want roster depth, front offices are taking a step back and asking who they want to give these huge deals to. While Ingram and LaVine are elite scorers who make teams better, front offices are asking whether they are the kind of players who should be paid max money. Do they contribute enough to a winning team?
Second, the Warriors may have lost big names in Klay Thompson and Chris Paul this summer, but they had a solid offseason. In place of those Hall of Famers who were near the end of their careers, the Warriors added Buddy Hield, D’Anthony Melton and Kyle Anderson, making the team a little deeper and more balanced than it was last season. Add those veterans to a youth movement led by Brandin Podzemski, Jonathan Kumimga and Trayce Jackson-Davis and the Warriors have something worth keeping an eye on. They still need a secondary shot-maker to take the pressure off Stephen Curry, but if this is the roster the Warriors enter the season, they’ll be better than some outside the Bay Area might think.
