Getty Klay Thompson #11, Kevon Looney #5, Andrew Wiggins #22 and Gary Payton II #0 of the Golden State Warriors compete for the rebound in Game Five of the 2022 NBA Finals.
As the Golden State Warriors‘ season continues to unravel following an embarrassing home loss to the Toronto Raptors, the future of a key member of their last championship core is in limbo as the February 8 trade deadline approaches.
According to NBA insider Marc Stein, the Warriors are warming up to the idea of trading struggling forward Andrew Wiggins, who played a pivotal role in their title run against the Boston Celtics two years ago.
“Given the limited success Golden State has found when pairing [Jonathan] Kuminga with Andrew Wiggins, there is a rising belief among rival teams that the Warriors are increasingly open to the idea of trading Wiggins, who was an integral component of their title run in 2022. The question persists: What sort of market exists for Wiggins, even though he possesses what is regarded as a team-friendly contract, so soon after he was relegated from the Warriors’ starting lineup? Wiggins, 28, is in Year 1 of a four-year, $109 million deal,” Stein wrote in his January 8 Substack newsletter.
Steve Kerr tried again to play Andrew Wiggins and Jonathan Kuminga together — starting them against the Raptors — and it quickly backfired.
Toronto went off to a 9-2 start, and built a 24-12 lead before Kerr pulled out Kuminga and Wiggins. The Warriors never recovered from their flat start.
Kuminga and Wiggins were a combined minus-34 on the floor. They cannot co-exist no matter how Kerr tried to make it work.
Wiggins finished minus-29 in 17 minutes. This season, the Warriors are minus-150 when Wiffins is on the floor. On the flip side, they are 157 points better without Wiggins, per The Athletic.
His rapid regression from their title run has hurt his trade value.
Warriors Stick With Their Golden Trio
The Warriors continue to indicate they want to ride it out with their aging trio of stars, according to Stein.
“It must be reiterated, for starters, that the Warriors do not exactly appear to be one trade away from contention based on current form. There likewise continues to be zero indication that they would even explore trading franchise legends Klay Thompson or Draymond Green,” Stein wrote.
Thompson’s inconsistent performances and Green’s volatile behavior are threatening to waste one of Stephen Curry’s remaining championship windows. Despite signs that their dynasty is ending, the Warriors refuse to waive the white flag.
Adam Silver Talks Draymond Green Out of Retirement
In a revealing episode of his podcast “The Draymond Green Show,” the Warriors All-Star forward said NBA Commissioner Adam Silver talked him out of retirement.
“I told him, ‘Adam this is too much for me. … This is too much. It’s all becoming too much for me — and I’m going to retire,’” Green said in the video clip obtained by ESPN. “And Adam said, ‘You’re making a very rash decision and I won’t let you do that.’
“We had a long, great conversation — very helpful to me. Very thankful to play in a league with a commissioner like Adam who’s more about helping you than hurting you; helping you than punishing you. He’s more about the players.”
The NBA lifted Green’s suspension on Saturday, January 6, but he will need more time to ramp up his physical conditioning after being away from the Warriors for 12 games. He returned to the Warriors bench in street clothes during Sunday’s 133-118 loss to the Toronto Raptors at Chase Center.
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Warriors ‘Increasingly Open’ to Trade Key Member of Championship Core: Insider