RM: Just say no, unless it's a steal.

Marc J. Spears @MarcJSpears

It’s no surprise to me that Warriors have interest in Kevin Durant,
according to sources. So does more more than half the league. It’s KEVIN
DURANT. You better make the call if you’re an NBA GM. It’s KEVIN DURANT.

3:14 PM · Jul 3, 2022

https://twitter.com/MarcJSpears/status/1543674680602595328

Robin Miller wrote:
>
> RM: Just say no, unless it's a steal.
>
>
> Marc J. Spears  @MarcJSpears
>
> It’s no surprise to me that Warriors have interest in Kevin Durant,
> according to sources. So does more more than half the league. It’s KEVIN
> DURANT. You better make the call if you’re an NBA GM. It’s KEVIN DURANT.

Meh. Been there, done that.

Durant left the Warriors primarily because he wanted to The Guy on a
championship team. Brooklyn didn't work out, and he'll never be The Guy
on the Warriors.

For the Warriors, with cap considerations, there's no way of getting him
for a steal -- it would cost serious assets just to make the cap work,
and all the same names are turning up when there was speculation last
year about the possibility of Ben Simmons. Wiggins, Wiseman, Kuminga,
Moody, PLUS draft picks and pick swaps.

That might get the Warriors one or two more titles (or close to) right
now, but with Green, Thompson and Curry now all on the downsides of
their careers (and slowly declining talent levels) means a lot of talent
loss by the time they start retiring. It's been painful to watch the
limitations of Iguodala this year -- still flashes of greatness, but
less and less frequently, and far too much time with DNPs in the box
score. In my book, no deal.

I don't see KD as that much of an asset. Another talented, but
declining veteran, plus that he now is in category of injury-prone.

At this stage, KD needs the Warriors (to better cement his legacy, at
least in his own mind, than the Warriors need KD). As they currently
constructed, I think they're a lot better for a lot longer than if they
move a bunch of those guys to try to get one more ring.

For KD, I think he's now at the point in his career where he may have to
choose between being The Guy on a team whose realistic hopes are getting
to the second round of the playoffs, or being a complementary player for
a true title contender (and where somebody else has just as much claim
to being The Guy), but not both.

Smith

NFN Smith wrote:
> Robin Miller wrote:
>>
>> RM: Just say no, unless it's a steal.
>>
>>
>> Marc J. Spears  @MarcJSpears
>>
>> It’s no surprise to me that Warriors have interest in Kevin Durant,
>> according to sources. So does more more than half the league. It’s
>> KEVIN DURANT. You better make the call if you’re an NBA GM. It’s KEVIN
>> DURANT.
>
> Meh.  Been there, done that.
>
> Durant left the Warriors primarily because he wanted to The Guy on a
> championship team.  Brooklyn didn't work out, and he'll never be The Guy
> on the Warriors.
>
> For the Warriors, with cap considerations, there's no way of getting him
> for a steal -- it would cost serious assets just to make the cap work,
> and all the same names are turning up when there was speculation last
> year about the possibility of Ben Simmons.  Wiggins, Wiseman, Kuminga,
> Moody, PLUS draft picks and pick swaps.
>
> That might get the Warriors one or two more titles (or close to) right
> now, but with Green, Thompson and Curry now all on the downsides of
> their careers (and slowly declining talent levels) means a lot of talent
> loss by the time they start retiring.  It's been painful to watch the
> limitations of Iguodala this year -- still flashes of greatness, but
> less and less frequently, and far too much time with DNPs in the box
> score. In my book, no deal.
>
> I don't see KD as that much of an asset.  Another talented, but
> declining veteran, plus that he now is in category of injury-prone.
>
> At this stage, KD needs the Warriors (to better cement his legacy, at
> least in his own mind, than the Warriors need KD).  As they currently
> constructed, I think they're a lot better for a lot longer than if they
> move a bunch of those guys to try to get one more ring.
>
> For KD, I think he's now at the point in his career where he may have to
> choose between being The Guy on a team whose realistic hopes are getting
> to the second round of the playoffs, or being a complementary player for
> a true title contender (and where somebody else has just as much claim
> to being The Guy), but not both.
>
> Smith
>
>

Great analysis. I agree.

And happy Fourth!

--Robin

Robin Miller wrote:
> NFN Smith wrote:
>> Robin Miller wrote:
>>>
>>> RM: Just say no, unless it's a steal.
>>>
>>>
>>> Marc J. Spears  @MarcJSpears
>>>
>>> It’s no surprise to me that Warriors have interest in Kevin Durant,
>>> according to sources. So does more more than half the league. It’s
>>> KEVIN DURANT. You better make the call if you’re an NBA GM. It’s
>>> KEVIN DURANT.
>>
>> Meh.  Been there, done that.
>>
>> Durant left the Warriors primarily because he wanted to The Guy on a
>> championship team.  Brooklyn didn't work out, and he'll never be The
>> Guy on the Warriors.
>>
>> For the Warriors, with cap considerations, there's no way of getting
>> him for a steal -- it would cost serious assets just to make the cap
>> work, and all the same names are turning up when there was speculation
>> last year about the possibility of Ben Simmons.  Wiggins, Wiseman,
>> Kuminga, Moody, PLUS draft picks and pick swaps.
>>
>> That might get the Warriors one or two more titles (or close to) right
>> now, but with Green, Thompson and Curry now all on the downsides of
>> their careers (and slowly declining talent levels) means a lot of
>> talent loss by the time they start retiring.  It's been painful to
>> watch the limitations of Iguodala this year -- still flashes of
>> greatness, but less and less frequently, and far too much time with
>> DNPs in the box score. In my book, no deal.
>>
>> I don't see KD as that much of an asset.  Another talented, but
>> declining veteran, plus that he now is in category of injury-prone.
>>
>> At this stage, KD needs the Warriors (to better cement his legacy, at
>> least in his own mind, than the Warriors need KD).  As they currently
>> constructed, I think they're a lot better for a lot longer than if
>> they move a bunch of those guys to try to get one more ring.
>>
>> For KD, I think he's now at the point in his career where he may have
>> to choose between being The Guy on a team whose realistic hopes are
>> getting to the second round of the playoffs, or being a complementary
>> player for a true title contender (and where somebody else has just as
>> much claim to being The Guy), but not both.
>>
>> Smith
>>
>>
>
>
> Great analysis. I agree.
>
> And happy Fourth!
>
> --Robin
>

I just wanted to add that Wiggins would have to be part of the trade for
the salaries to work, and, as great as Durant is, I would rather watch
Wiggins continue to develop into the best possible version of himself.
It was fabulous watching him grow into a defensive force during the
playoffs.

--Robin

Robin Miller wrote:
>
> I just wanted to add that Wiggins would have to be part of the trade for
> the salaries to work, and, as great as Durant is, I would rather watch
> Wiggins continue to develop into the best possible version of himself.
> It was fabulous watching him grow into a defensive force during the
> playoffs.

I agree.

As presently constructed (even with the losses of GP II and Porter), the
Warriors are potentially set up to be near the top of the league for the
remainder of the decade. Of course, that assumes player development,
and that injury problems for Wiseman and Baldwin are in the realm of
early-career Curry rather than of somebody like Greg Oden.

But to me, the ceiling of moving a bunch of young players (and draft
picks) seems to be one more title, and then a team that drifts down to
where the best that can be expected is one that's in play-in territory,
and not a lot of capacity of acquiring new talent.

At the end of the season, it was interesting in seeing post-mortems for
the Lakers. They're over the cap, the LeBron is aging, Davis struggles
to stay on the floor, Westbrook is expensive and not productive, the
supporting cast is inferior, and that they had no draft picks this year
(and most of their first rounders already traded), and little capacity
to upgrade via trades.

Things might not be quite as bleak as that, and the LeBron may be able
to carry them by himself for another couple of years, but I think
there's not too much left that they can do with this core of players.
And I don't think pulling off a trade for Kyrie Irving is going to make
much of a difference, either.

Right now, I'm really glad to be a Warriors fan and not a Lakers fan,
and I'm not convinced that a trade for KD doesn't put us on the road to
where the Lakers are.

Smith

NFN Smith wrote:
> Robin Miller wrote:
>>
>> I just wanted to add that Wiggins would have to be part of the trade
>> for the salaries to work, and, as great as Durant is, I would rather
>> watch Wiggins continue to develop into the best possible version of
>> himself. It was fabulous watching him grow into a defensive force
>> during the playoffs.
>
> I agree.
>
> As presently constructed (even with the losses of GP II and Porter), the
> Warriors are potentially set up to be near the top of the league for the
> remainder of the decade.  Of course, that assumes player development,
> and that injury problems for Wiseman and Baldwin are in the realm of
> early-career Curry rather than of somebody like Greg Oden.
>
> But to me, the ceiling of moving a bunch of young players (and draft
> picks) seems to be one more title, and then a team that drifts down to
> where the best that can be expected is one that's in play-in territory,
> and not a lot of capacity of acquiring new talent.
>
> At the end of the season, it was interesting in seeing post-mortems for
> the Lakers.  They're over the cap, the LeBron is aging, Davis struggles
> to stay on the floor, Westbrook is expensive and not productive, the
> supporting cast is inferior, and that they had no draft picks this year
> (and most of their first rounders already traded), and little capacity
> to upgrade via trades.
>
> Things might not be quite as bleak as that, and the LeBron may be able
> to carry them by himself for another couple of years, but I think
> there's not too much left that they can do with this core of players.
> And I don't think pulling off a trade for Kyrie Irving is going to make
> much of a difference, either.
>
> Right now, I'm really glad to be a Warriors fan and not a Lakers fan,
> and I'm not convinced that a trade for KD doesn't put us on the road to
> where the Lakers are.
>
> Smith

I saw a comment on another forum that the only reason for the Warriors
to consider the trade would be if ownership is unwilling to pay for the
extensions for both Poole and Wiggins. I really hope it doesn't come to
that.

--Robin

On 7/3/2022 4:27 PM, Robin Miller wrote:
>
> RM: Just say no, unless it's a steal.
>
>
> Marc J. Spears  @MarcJSpears
>
> It’s no surprise to me that Warriors have interest in Kevin Durant,
> according to sources. So does more more than half the league. It’s KEVIN
> DURANT. You better make the call if you’re an NBA GM. It’s KEVIN DURANT.
>
> 3:14 PM · Jul 3, 2022
>
> https://twitter.com/MarcJSpears/status/1543674680602595328
>

Bleah! I agree with all the points made above. This would completely
sacrifice the team's future to get (hopefully) one more title.

Allen wrote:
>>
>
>
> Bleah! I agree with all the points made above. This would completely
> sacrifice the team's future to get (hopefully) one more title.

One further consideration. In the FastBreak blog, RobertL does a nice
end-of-season writeup, including thoughts about Curry's legacy,
good-byes to Payton and Porter, and a bit on summer leagues, but a
fairly extensive section on KD, and why he really doesn't fit with the
current iteration of the Warriors. It's well worth reading:
https://blogs.mercurynews.com/warriors/2022/07/04/they-will-never-forget-you-until-some-new-comes-along/

Smith

NFN Smith wrote:
> Allen wrote:
>>>
>>
>>
>> Bleah! I agree with all the points made above. This would completely
>> sacrifice the team's future to get (hopefully) one more title.
>
> One further consideration. In the FastBreak blog, RobertL does a nice
> end-of-season writeup, including thoughts about Curry's legacy,
> good-byes to Payton and Porter, and a bit on summer leagues, but a
> fairly extensive section on KD, and why he really doesn't fit with the
> current iteration of the Warriors.  It's well worth reading:
> https://blogs.mercurynews.com/warriors/2022/07/04/they-will-never-forget-you-until-some-new-comes-along/
>
>
> Smith

Thanks. That was a good read. And that site has amazing reader
participation, with over 1000 comments now on this article.

None of the writers interest me the way Adam Lauridsen did, though.

--Robin

Robin Miller wrote:
>
>
> Thanks. That was a good read. And that site has amazing reader
> participation, with over 1000 comments now on this article.
>
> None of the writers interest me the way Adam Lauridsen did, though.

Lauridsen is definitely one of a kind, but I've learned to appreciate
Chris, Robert L and Viggy, even if they're not Lauridsen. He did have
post there right after the Finals, and that was definitely worth reading.

Smith

NFN Smith wrote:
> Robin Miller wrote:
>>
>>
>> Thanks. That was a good read. And that site has amazing reader
>> participation, with over 1000 comments now on this article.
>>
>> None of the writers interest me the way Adam Lauridsen did, though.
>
>
> Lauridsen is definitely one of a kind, but I've learned to appreciate
> Chris, Robert L and Viggy, even if they're not Lauridsen.  He did have
> post there right after the Finals, and that was definitely worth reading.
>
> Smith

Yes, I read Adam's post. And I agree that the three new writers are
fine. It's just that, between everything Allen and Don post here, and
what I read on The Athletic, there's more than I actually have time for
already. But it's great what a community Fast Break has become.

--Robin