Getty Golden State Warriors big man Kevon Looney looks on during a game against the Brooklyn Nets.
After the Golden State Warriors missed out on Paul George, who went to Philadelphia, and Lauri Markkanen, who remained in Utah, there is no available star that can make the Warriors go all in.
In the absence of a homerun trade at the moment, perhaps the Warriors could hit some singles to round out their roster on the fringes.
Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley proposed a three-team trade that could land the Warriors Mitchell Robinson, a legit 7-foot big man who can help them compete against the Western Conference’s elites.
Golden State Warriors receive: Mitchell Robinson
New York Knicks receive: Josh Green
Charlotte Hornets receive: Gary Payton II, Kevon Looney, a 2026 second-round pick (via ATL, from GSW) and a 2028 second-round pick (via ATL, from GSW)
Robinson may not move the needle as George or Makkanen could have for the Warriors, who have the ninth-best championship odds at +4500 at FanDuel, one of the top U.S. online sportsbooks.
But he can help them defend the best big men out West, from three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic to four-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert to last season’s unanimous Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama to Oklahoma City’s twin towers Isaiah Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren to Memphis 7-foot-4 rookie Zach Edey.
Mitchell Robinson Could Be Warriors’ Low-Cost Trade Target
With Robinson out until January, the Warriors could target him as a low-cost trade candidate without giving up any of their significant draft assets and save it for a disgruntled star down the road.
“A healthy Robinson is a dynamic, above-the-rim center. He’s an explosive lob-finisher, an active glass-cleaner and a don’t-even-think-about-it rim-protector. He’s almost a souped-up Trayce Jackson-Davis with more size and length and better hops. Robinson could be the ideal anchor for this defense and a lob threat teams must constantly monitor on the offensive end,” Buckley wrote.
With Kerr aiming to get the Warriors back to becoming a defense-oriented team, Robinson fits the bill as a defensive anchor next to Green.
Robinson was on his way to an All-Defensive season when an ankle injury forced him to sit out 50 games in the regular season.
The 26-year-old Knicks center led the league in offensive rebounding over the last two seasons. He averaged 4.6 offensive rebounds last season. He has career averages of 8.0 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game since the Knicks drafted him 36th overall in the second round in 2018.
Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau called Robinson an elite center, though he’s become expendable with the arrival of four-time All-Star center Karl-Anthony Towns.
“I like the versatility [Robinson] gives us,” Thibodeau told reporters, per the New York Post on September 30. “We won a lot of games with our rebounding last year. We know he’s elite. Offensive rebounder, probably the best in the league. Defensive rebounding. Rim protection. Pick and roll defense. Those are things he adds to the team.”
Kevon Looney’s Expiring Deal as Trade Bait
Robinson has two more seasons left on his four-year, $60 million descending deal.
Flipping Looney, who is on an expiring $8 million deal, could give the Warriors a solid center until next season. Robinson, because of his team-friendly deal could also be a salary ballast in a star trade if the opportunity arises.
The Warriors had shopped Looney around last season when they explored trading for a new center ahead of last February trade deadline, according to The Athletic’s Anthony Slater.
“The Warriors have explored the center market. Could Wendell Carter Jr. be obtained from the Orlando Magic? Atlanta’s Clint Capela is reportedly available. Is Brooklyn’s Nic Claxton worth the price it’d take to get him and whatever contract he’d command in free agency this summer?” Slater wrote on January 30.
But among those three centers, only Capela is available. But Capela is an older and more expensive version of Robinson. The 30-year-old Capela is owed $22.3 million this year. He is also on an expiring deal like Looney.
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Proposed Warriors 3-Team Trade Swaps Kevon Looney for ‘Dynamic Above-The-Rim-Center’