Getty (L-R) Andrew Wiggins #22, Stephen Curry #30, Draymond Green #23 and Jonathan Kuminga #00 of the Golden State Warriors sit on the bench.
As heartbreaking collapses define the Golden State Warriors‘ first 20 games of the season, The Ringer’s Bill Simmons bats for a 2-for-1 blockbuster trade.
“[Andrew] Wiggins and [Jonathan] Kuminga for [Pascal] Siakam,” Simmons said on his podcast. “Who says no?”
Pascal Siakam to the Warriors?
@BillSimmons proposes a possible trade to fix the Golden State Warriors:
“Wiggins terrible season really since last year when he disappeared for six, eight weeks we still don’t know what happened. This year he showed up out of shape. And he was terrible for a month solid and really, really hurt them. [He] stop rebounding, finally had a good game this week, but he’s Canadian,” Simmons explained.
Wiggins missed the Warriors’ past two games after slamming his finger into a car door. He’s averaging a career-low 12.8 points on a horrible 43/27/60 shooting split. His 4.3-rebound average is an eight-year low.
“Kuminga, it’s year three for him,” Simmons continued. “I should know by year three, do you have a chance of being somebody yet? With him, he clearly needs a new team. And then Siakam. take a flier on him if you’re the Warriors. He gives you a little more size, changes your team a little bit and gets you out of this Wiggins situation. Thank you, Wiggins. Thank you for the 2022 [NBA] Finals. We’re going to have to agree to disagree on what happened the last year or so but now you’re going to be in Canada Good luck!”
For Simmons, this trade makes sense for all parties. It will be a homecoming for Wiggins, one of Canada’s top players, and Kuminga will have a connection with Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri, who is of African descent.
For Siakam, it would represent a new beginning after the Raptors decided to build around Scottie Barnes. It is a chance for the two-time NBA All-Star to compete for a title on a contract year. At 29, Siakam would be looking for his final big payday in the offseason.
Warriors Blow 22-point Lead in Heartbreaking Loss
Draymond Green missed a potential game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer as the Los Angeles Clippers completed a monumental 22-point second-half-comeback.
It was a jarring loss for the Warriors, who led until the final 9.2 seconds of the game.
Paul George hit a step-back 3-pointer to give the Clippers their first lead of the game which ended up the game-winner.
Stephen Curry missed a jumper that would have given the Warriors a 114-110 buffer before George’s heroics. Curry passed up on the Warriors’ final play, finding Green in the corner. But Green’s shot fell short.
It was the second time in a week they had blown big leads. On November 28, they squandered a 24-point lead and lost in a similar fashion to the Sacramento Kings on Malik Monk’s game-winner.
Warriors Interested in Grizzlies’ Reserve Wing
While Siakam remained the hottest name to be linked to the Warriors, a report surfaced that they could be eyeing a smaller trade.
According to Hoopshype’s Michael Scotto, the Warriors are among the teams monitoring Memphis Grizzlies’ swingman John Konchar.
“Reserve forward John Konchar is also a candidate to be dealt before the February trade deadline. The Celtics, Warriors, and Lakers are among the teams who’ve kept tabs on Konchar’s situation from afar, HoopsHype has learned,” Scotto wrote.
Like the rest of the Grizzlies, still reeling from Ja Morant’s suspension, Konchar is struggling this season. The 6-foot-5 Konchar is only averaging 3.0 points and 4.2 rebounds per game while shooting a career-low 34.9 percent from the field. But he is a good rebounder for his size.