California NBA contenders at a cross roads following trade deadline

When the Los Angeles Lakers played the Golden State Warriors on Saturday without Luka Dončić and Steph Curry, the most interesting drama happened off the court. 

Both teams’ general managers spoke to reporters before the Lakers’ 105–99 win. And with California’s NBA darlings both on the verge of major change, a lot of eyebrow-raising things came out of those conversations. 

Where do we begin? 

First of all, Warriors’ GM Mike Dunleavy claimed Draymond Green wasn’t involved in trade talks for Giannis Antetokounmpo. “Draymond was not being shopped or talked about in deals,” he said. 

The problem?

That assertion was contradicted by Green himself Saturday morning on his podcast “The Draymond Green Show” when he said Dunleavy reached out to him before the trade deadline to say that he or Jimmy Butler would have to be included in a deal to match salaries. 

“What is said to me in that moment was there’s a chance I may get traded for Giannis because he didn’t rule it out,” Green said on his podcast. “He didn’t say, ‘We’re not putting you in a deal.’ So I took that as, all right, it’ll probably be me.”

So, the Warriors not only missed out on acquiring Antetokounmpo — whom the Bucks decided not to trade despite Golden State opening up its treasure chest of first picks — but the organization is also trying to mop up the fallout that came out of those talks. 

Other interesting things that came out of his availability? Dunleavy expressed optimism that Kristaps Porzingis — whom the Warriors acquired in exchange for Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield — will be healthy even though he has only played in 17 games this season because of postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) and left Achilles tendonitis. 

“We feel good about it,” Dunleavy said, before adding, in essence, that they had nothing to lose by taking that gamble. “We’re sending out a player in a similar boat who struggled to stay on the floor.”  

In other words, at least the Kuminga saga has finally come to an end. 

Dunleavy also made it clear that the Warriors are still open to putting everything on the line this summer to give Steph Curry another chance at winning a title, calling this a “win-now” window. 

As for this current roster? Dunleavy didn’t pull any punches.

“It was pointed out to me today that over [the] last calendar year, we had the fourth-best record in the NBA from when Jimmy got traded to when Jimmy got hurt,” Dunleavy said, referencing Butler suffering a torn ACL last month. “Despite the idea that we’re not in the mix, we’re fading, all of this stuff, the reality is up until Jimmy got hurt, we were pretty good. And I think we were trending in the right direction. Now we’ve had to pivot a little bit. I think adding Kristaps can help. But this group is kinda what it is.” 

Not a shining endorsement for the Warriors’ roster. But if Porzingis can get and stay healthy, Golden State could make the playoffs. And if Butler weren’t injured, they could’ve really competed. But for now, the Warriors will look ahead, when they’ll once again try to use their stash of draft capital to make a big splash. 

“We’ve got the goods to make deals,’ Dunleavy said. 

On the other side of Crypto.com Arena, Lakers’ president of basketball operations also spoke to reporters following the trade deadline. He addressed whether the Lakers were aggressive enough in pursuing deals, considering they have 26-year-old Luka Dončić playing at an MVP-level, Austin Reaves looking like an All-Star, and LeBron James doing things at 41 years old that were previously considered undoable. 

Pelinka, whose only move before Thursday’s deadline was to deal Gabe Vincent and a second-round pick for Luke Kennard, made it clear the Lakers are looking toward their future, when they’ll have three first-round picks and a heap of expiring contracts this summer.

“One form of being aggressive is saying no to moves,” he said. 

Pelinka also revealed that the Lakers intend to restructure their front office, emulating back-to-back World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers. 

In other words, change is going to come. A lot of change. For him, too. 

“When Mark [Walter] bought the team, Jeanie [Buss] and I did a really deep dive with him on sort of the areas he wants to grow and move into and get aggressive,” he acknowledged.

Both organizations are at a turning point.

The Lakers are trying to build around Dončić while he’s in his prime. And the Warriors are trying to stay relevant while 37-year-old Curry still looks like Curry. Neither team is a true contender this season. 
But both teams believe this summer, they can make the tweaks necessary to put their teams atop the league. 

So, while the basketball was fun Saturday (six Lakers players scored in double-digits, led by James’ 20-point, 10-assist and seven-rebound performance), the real intriguing stuff happened behind the scenes. 
We got a glimpse into how the two of the most important franchises in the league are thinking.

And it’s clear that this summer is going to be monumental.

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