Damian Lillard Noise Affecting Potential Warriors Signing: Report

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Dario Saric looks on during a game between the Phoenix Suns and the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Golden State Warriors‘ offseason got off to a rip-roaring start as the team promoted Mike Dunleavy Jr. to GM, came to terms on a new four-year deal with franchise mainstay Draymond Green and then reimagined its backcourt with a Jordan Poole-for-Chris Paul swap.

Since that initial burst of activity, however, the Dubs have been relatively quiet on the wheeling and dealing front, inking backup point man Cory Joseph and, well, not doing much else to round out their roster.

What makes this especially confounding for Warriors fans who have had their eyes glued to their news feeds is the fact that the team has been heavily linked to veteran big man Dario Saric since before free agency began. As of this writing, though, the two sides have yet to actually commit to one another.

According to Yahoo! Sports’ Jake Fischer, the Damian Lillard drama that’s unfolding in Portland may be responsible for gumming up the works.

Fischer: Warriors Target Dario Saric Among Parties Waiting for Dame Domino to Fall?

The whole of the NBA world has been in a tizzy since July 1 when ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne reported that Lillard had requested a trade from the
Portland Trail Blazers.

For their part, the folks in the Miami Heat‘s front office have been working double-time to make a deal happen (South Beach is said to be Dame’s preferred destination). Meanwhile, Lillard’s request and the Heat’s machinations are holding up other potential manuevers, per Fischer.

“The Heat have told free-agent players like Malik Beasley, who agreed to a one-year contract with Milwaukee on Monday, that Miami is in a holding pattern before moving forward with its veteran-minimum signings, sources said,” Fischer wrote.

Apparently, Saric is also in a holding pattern as a result of everything that’s going down on the Dame front.

Added Fischer: “Dario Saric, who had a strong suitor in Golden State, could also be involved with Miami depending on these Lillard proceedings, sources said.”

It’s not difficult to envision a player like Saric being intrigued by Miami if Lillard is in the mix there. And even if he does still have his sights set on the Warriors, big stars suddenly becoming availabile has a tendency to slow the market at large.

In any case, Saric has a skill set that could fit like a glove in either South Beach or San Fran.

Saric Would Make Sense for Either Golden State or Miami

Saric split his 2022-23 season between the Phoenix Suns and the Oklahoma City Thunder, averaging 6.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 14.1 minutes per game along the way. He also shot 45.8% from the field and an impressive 39.1% from three-point range.

For a Warriors team that struggled to shoot during the playoffs (its effective field-goal percent of 52.5 ranked just 10th out of the 16 playoff teams) and a Heat squad that couldn’t space the floor all year until the postseason (its 53.0 eFG% ranked 25th league-wide during the regular season), Saric’s range and high IQ offensively would hold significant value.

He’s not just a quality bench player/spot starter, he’s someone who has something that Golden State and Miami have lacked at times.