One of the more reliable trade assumptions around the league came true Wednesday night when the Golden State Warriors traded wing players, Alec Burks and Glenn Robinson to the Philadelphia 76ers. Golden State held both players out of action against the Nets, a game that was an emotional gut punch of a loss.
In exchange, the Warriors shore up an institutional need: a bunch of low cost shots at incoming NBA players (plus some dumped salary).
From a pure basketball perspective, this really cements “the tank.” Robinson and Burks were number one and number two for total minutes played for the Warriors this year, as per basketball reference.
Burks was third in scoring on the team (16 points per game), Robinson fifth (13 points). They also rank second and third in total three pointers made this year, and Burks is fourth on the team in assists.
I was particularly hopeful that the Warriors would retain Robinson, whose low usage, efficient outside shot, and solid perimeter defense would have been a perfect fit with next year’s fully weaponized Warriors team. In a league that prizes “3 and D” wing players, Robinson fit the bill. He had the third best scoring efficiency on the team (.574 TS%), while taking the defensive assignment against the opposing team’s best perimeter player.
If you thought the offense was bad before this trade (literally the worst), get ready to watch a month of this Warriors team seeking a new identity. Steph Curry will return at the beginning of March; but until then the Warriors are most assuredly headed with the wind along their path to a top pick in this year’s NBA draft. These were two significant rotation players that Golden State just traded.
Where to from here?
Robinson and Burks, both cheap, came to the Warriors with the hopes of playing alongside Stephen Curry and hopefully putting a toehold for a spot in the organization moving forward. Burks will probably get the most mention in this move, but in my opinion Robinson was the better fit and superior player. Regardless of where you prioritize each player, it’s impossible to understate the impact this move will have on Golden State. It was felt quite clearly in the face of the stomping the team took at the hands of the Nets - and with Kobe Bryant’s recent passing, just adds to a general sense of pall around the team.
Also, this move is not quite enough to drop the Warriors below the dreaded luxury tax line, which will trigger the even more punitive repeater tax for the upcoming 2020-2021 season. These numbers have been known for a while but basically the point was that the team had to either trade Kevon Looney (which they are rightly reluctant to do), or tack on additional trades of someone like Omari Spellman. Worst case scenario would be the Warriors attaching one of these incoming second round picks to say Jordan Poole or Jacob Evans.
Unlikely. But possible, especially if the team is really thinking three years out - it makes a lot of sense to avoid the repeater tax, which compounds the tax penalty for teams that exceed the cap in any three out of four seasons.
Instead, I would guess that the Warriors - who will need to sign at least one more contract in order to meet NBA roster minimums - will use the open roster spot to call back Ky Bowman and put him on a full contract. It leaves a gaping hole at the wings, a position already rice paper thin for Golden State and likely pushes the quest for real answers into next season.
So Golden State will move on, possibly making another move if they prioritize avoiding the repeater tax.
Philadelphia just got significantly better.Though Burks and Robinson aren’t major stars, they are valuable rotation-quality players that are playing well.
This is part of the long game to land Giannis. Beef up the Sixers bench to help them beat the Bucks and end their historical regular season. Then trade D-Lo and those 2nd rounders for Giannis. The perfect scenario would be Sixers beat the Bucks, Sixers win the Finals, Giannis becomes unhappy enough to leave the Bucks. And as a bonus, neither LA team win the crown.
Burks was a free agent, so we essentially gave up nothing for next year's year. While GR3 has a player option, I strongly suspect he'll decline it, even if just for another 1+1. His deal was a classic "vet who can't find the right deal, taking a 1+1 for injury insurance" case.
So it's not like the team actually gave anything up. Even if they want GR3 back, it's unlikely trading him to a contender irreparably hurt his relationship with the franchise. If he can get more than we can pay, he's going to take it, if not, he's going to decide based on basketball reasons.
That being said, we sure do have a bunch of mediocre second round picks incoming.
[Macri] With almost 3 hours to go and lots of hurdles still to jump, I'm hearing D'Angelo Russell to the Knicks is a very real possibility. At the very least, there is motivation on both sides to try and get something done.
Hard to see how this trade is good. Mid to late 2nd rounders are basically g-leaguers. We gave them up for free.
At the very least, we needed them to take a load off Curry when he returns. Instead, now Curry will be easing Poole (who I can't see ever becoming an NBA player) and Evans' loads.
Moving Burks was a good thing, IMHO. Those minutes need to go to Poole. They really need Poole to get up to within shouting distance of a league average player by sometime next season. The more minutes he gets this season, the better.
And, it gives us more minutes to see if Evans can play. It's really hard to judge what he's done so far, given that he's been hurt and in-and-out of the lineup. I don't think he's going to make it, but by the end of the season, we'll know, and can make a good decision about him.
[O'Connor] Leon Rose and Worldwide Wes to the Knicks is fascinating. At CAA Rose represented Towns, Booker, Embiid, Kuzma. Keep in mind Towns, Booker and D’Angelo Russell—another CAA client—said last summer they’d someday like to team up. Smart decision by the Knicks to hire Rose and Wes.
[sorry, don't know how to format twitter yet]
So it looks like the Warriors could have quite a bit of trade leverage with D'LO (maybe too late for today, but definitely in the offseason)
Sucks to see Burks and GR3 go, I wish they could've stayed, not only becasue they were fun to watch, but because (especially GR3III) seemed to love the Bay. But they get to go to a playoff team, so there's that, I guess.
Sucks to see Burks and especially GR3 go. Hopefully we can at least get Robinson back next year, he can play a critical role on our team.
Also, I think the best course of action for us (and the one Lacob will take) is to dump Evans and Spellman (I think Poole still has good upside, as shown by the fact that he did very well in the G-League, and we have too much talent as bigs in Chriss, Smiley, Looney + bigger C who we'll get) such that we go under the tax. It's Lacob's money, but he can be more reckless with his spending this way.
Disappointed. It's easy to overvalue your own players. I knew or rather had a feeling that this high second we were talking a few weeks back for Burks would never materialize. Inconsistent scorer. Below average defender and passer.
GR3 on the other hand is NOT worth any second round pick exchange out there. I understand the possibility of using second round picks as trade assets but GR3 exactly the type of player that can sustain a locker through all this losing and or youth movement and can round out your bench nicely at full strength. That carries more value than any trade asset (even our own back from Dallas). I sincerely do hope that we put all these picks to good use because while I think Myers is great at finding free agents to round out the roster or making trades. He's a below average draft evaluator. This has Lacob and the luxury tax written all over it though
great article from Monte Poole about how this was the plan. Once Klay and KD got hurt, and then we lost KD, it started this cascade of contingency planning. This isn't where the Warriors WANTED to be, but they had a plan and as much as it hurts, the plan is working as designed.
"To move three veterans for as many future draft picks as possible, and they now have four more than they had two weeks ago."
Well, it’s only gonna get more interesting the rest of the season. We’re gonna get to watch a few new prospects along the way to the lottery. Endless possibilities now. And of course....... Unleash The Geech!!!!
Sorry to see Burks and Robinson go. I guess we needed the cap space, but I question the 'need' for 2nd round picks. Those players have a chance to be good but after Steph, Klay, and Dray start to decline. The time to win starts next season. We don't have time to wait for those long shot draft picks to get good; we've already got Poole, Spellman, Evans, and Smailagic as young projects. How many of THOSE do we need?
Aww shucks! Just when team starts gelling, something happens - either a player goes down or trades occur. Another 12+ loss streak coming up.
Oh well! Hopefully this pays off in the long run. Hopefully one of those three picks will serendipitously end up in a range where we end up picking another Dray or Paschall.
And may be GRIII comes back next year.
To quote from Hitchhikers Guide, "So long and thanks for all the fish".
Sad to see them go, but I think they appreciated their time here. They were able to show their worth. Wonder If Robinson would choose to come back next year.
This is part of the long game to land Giannis. Beef up the Sixers bench to help them beat the Bucks and end their historical regular season. Then trade D-Lo and those 2nd rounders for Giannis. The perfect scenario would be Sixers beat the Bucks, Sixers win the Finals, Giannis becomes unhappy enough to leave the Bucks. And as a bonus, neither LA team win the crown.
Yipe. Those picks are almost completely worthless. Total salary dump and we're not even below the tax. What is going on here.
Burks was a free agent, so we essentially gave up nothing for next year's year. While GR3 has a player option, I strongly suspect he'll decline it, even if just for another 1+1. His deal was a classic "vet who can't find the right deal, taking a 1+1 for injury insurance" case.
So it's not like the team actually gave anything up. Even if they want GR3 back, it's unlikely trading him to a contender irreparably hurt his relationship with the franchise. If he can get more than we can pay, he's going to take it, if not, he's going to decide based on basketball reasons.
That being said, we sure do have a bunch of mediocre second round picks incoming.
Miami gets Crowder also in Iguodala deal. Haven't seen him play this year, is he too old to defend any more (Jae not Andre)?
Myers firing up the burner account:
[Macri] With almost 3 hours to go and lots of hurdles still to jump, I'm hearing D'Angelo Russell to the Knicks is a very real possibility. At the very least, there is motivation on both sides to try and get something done.
Hard to see how this trade is good. Mid to late 2nd rounders are basically g-leaguers. We gave them up for free.
At the very least, we needed them to take a load off Curry when he returns. Instead, now Curry will be easing Poole (who I can't see ever becoming an NBA player) and Evans' loads.
Moving Burks was a good thing, IMHO. Those minutes need to go to Poole. They really need Poole to get up to within shouting distance of a league average player by sometime next season. The more minutes he gets this season, the better.
And, it gives us more minutes to see if Evans can play. It's really hard to judge what he's done so far, given that he's been hurt and in-and-out of the lineup. I don't think he's going to make it, but by the end of the season, we'll know, and can make a good decision about him.
[O'Connor] Leon Rose and Worldwide Wes to the Knicks is fascinating. At CAA Rose represented Towns, Booker, Embiid, Kuzma. Keep in mind Towns, Booker and D’Angelo Russell—another CAA client—said last summer they’d someday like to team up. Smart decision by the Knicks to hire Rose and Wes.
[sorry, don't know how to format twitter yet]
So it looks like the Warriors could have quite a bit of trade leverage with D'LO (maybe too late for today, but definitely in the offseason)
Sucks to see Burks and GR3 go, I wish they could've stayed, not only becasue they were fun to watch, but because (especially GR3III) seemed to love the Bay. But they get to go to a playoff team, so there's that, I guess.
LOL, we got less for WCS.
It is reassuring to see the GRIII love here. The guy played hard under the radar. I wish him well.
Bummed about GR3 and tbh Burks too tbh. Does anyone know what deals they were on? Were they both FAs this summer anyways?
We're allowed to sign GR3 in the offseason right??
Sucks to see Burks and especially GR3 go. Hopefully we can at least get Robinson back next year, he can play a critical role on our team.
Also, I think the best course of action for us (and the one Lacob will take) is to dump Evans and Spellman (I think Poole still has good upside, as shown by the fact that he did very well in the G-League, and we have too much talent as bigs in Chriss, Smiley, Looney + bigger C who we'll get) such that we go under the tax. It's Lacob's money, but he can be more reckless with his spending this way.
Helping the 76ers beat the Bucks = Giannis becoming a Warrior! 😉
Disappointed. It's easy to overvalue your own players. I knew or rather had a feeling that this high second we were talking a few weeks back for Burks would never materialize. Inconsistent scorer. Below average defender and passer.
GR3 on the other hand is NOT worth any second round pick exchange out there. I understand the possibility of using second round picks as trade assets but GR3 exactly the type of player that can sustain a locker through all this losing and or youth movement and can round out your bench nicely at full strength. That carries more value than any trade asset (even our own back from Dallas). I sincerely do hope that we put all these picks to good use because while I think Myers is great at finding free agents to round out the roster or making trades. He's a below average draft evaluator. This has Lacob and the luxury tax written all over it though
great article from Monte Poole about how this was the plan. Once Klay and KD got hurt, and then we lost KD, it started this cascade of contingency planning. This isn't where the Warriors WANTED to be, but they had a plan and as much as it hurts, the plan is working as designed.
"To move three veterans for as many future draft picks as possible, and they now have four more than they had two weeks ago."
https://www.nbcsports.com/bayarea/warriors/warriors-offseason-plan-sign-and-trade-veterans-worked-perfectly
Well, it’s only gonna get more interesting the rest of the season. We’re gonna get to watch a few new prospects along the way to the lottery. Endless possibilities now. And of course....... Unleash The Geech!!!!
Sorry to see Burks and Robinson go. I guess we needed the cap space, but I question the 'need' for 2nd round picks. Those players have a chance to be good but after Steph, Klay, and Dray start to decline. The time to win starts next season. We don't have time to wait for those long shot draft picks to get good; we've already got Poole, Spellman, Evans, and Smailagic as young projects. How many of THOSE do we need?
I expected Burks, but I didn't expect GRIII too.
The FO has now ensured the tank job. The team is so void of talent at the wings I'm not sure they win much more even when Curry comes back.
Maybe there is some way to get GRIII back. He had such skillz!
Aww shucks! Just when team starts gelling, something happens - either a player goes down or trades occur. Another 12+ loss streak coming up.
Oh well! Hopefully this pays off in the long run. Hopefully one of those three picks will serendipitously end up in a range where we end up picking another Dray or Paschall.
And may be GRIII comes back next year.
To quote from Hitchhikers Guide, "So long and thanks for all the fish".
Sad to see them go, but I think they appreciated their time here. They were able to show their worth. Wonder If Robinson would choose to come back next year.