The Warriors keep getting warned about the same trap: don’t chase Stephen Curry’s present so hard that you wreck whatever comes next. That’s the backdrop for CBS Sports’ Sam Quinn, who has been arguing that Golden State would be smart to avoid a major swing if it means emptying out the cupboard.
Quinn’s case is built around the worst-case scenario. If the Warriors decide they’re close enough to contend and start stacking big moves, they could burn through control of most, if not all, of the first-round picks they own over the next seven years. That kind of all-in push, he argues, could leave them stuck for years after Curry retires.
But there’s another side to this, and it’s the one worth chasing. The Warriors don’t have to choose between standing pat and detonating the future. There are two paths that could let them get better now without creating a long-term mess.
One path is the rare bargain: a trade that costs only a modest amount of draft capital but brings back a player who matters far more than the price suggests. The other is more expensive upfront, but still manageable if the player’s value stays strong enough that he can later be moved for close to what the Warriors gave up.
The first type of deal is the kind smart front offices hunt for, and the example that keeps coming up is Boston’s trade for Derrick White. The Celtics sent out a 2022 first-round pick, a 2028 first-round pick swap and salary filler to get him. At the time, White was viewed as a low-end starter - useful defense, decent playmaking for a 2-guard, but not much of a shooter.
Since then, the trade has aged like a steal. White has made three All-Defensive teams and improved his three-point shooting, and the fit around him helped unlock more of his game.
The point isn’t that Golden State will find the next Derrick White exactly. It’s that players like that exist, and if the Warriors could land one for something like a 2027 first-round pick and a future first-round swap, that would improve the roster without “mortgaging the future.”
The more expensive route is trickier, but it can still work if the player holds his value. In theory, the Warriors could have made a huge offer for Jaylen Brown, kept him around for the next three-plus years while Curry is still playing, and then flipped him later to recoup some draft capital.
That kind of plan comes with obvious complications. Brown might not want to sign an extension, which would force the Warriors to move him before his contract expires. He has three years left on his deal, so Golden State could at least get two seasons out of him before he became an expiring contract.
Even then, there’s no guarantee the return would match the price. A future buyer might not be willing to give back the same number of first-round picks. And if that buyer is expected to be a title front-runner for the next half-decade, the picks coming back could land in the low-20s, while some of the ones the Warriors sent out might have been in the top 10.
Brown was traded to the 76ers three weeks ago, so that option is off the table for now. But Trey Murphy III fits the same basic idea, and he’s still out there as a possible target.
The reporting around Murphy says the Pelicans would want three unprotected first-round picks and a quality young player. Murphy is under contract at a value rate for three more seasons, which should keep him highly valuable on the trade market through at least the 2027-28 season.
That’s why the asking price might actually make sense. Murphy’s value feels more protected than Brown’s, especially since Brown is 3.5 years older and will be making over $60 million in each of the 2027-28 and 2028-29 seasons.
If Golden State were to send New Orleans first-round picks in 2027, 2030 - with the existing protection of 21-30 - and 2032 for Murphy, the 2027 pick would come while Curry is still playing at a high level. The 2030 and 2032 picks could be more valuable, but the Warriors would still have a first-round pick in every draft from 2028 on if they later found a Murphy buyer willing to pay up. The 2030 and 2032 selections would likely be lower than they would have been without the Murphy deal, but the cupboard wouldn’t be bare.
Of course, none of this comes without risk. Murphy could get hurt and crater his value. Curry could fall off quickly, which would make any first-rounder traded in 2027 or 2028 more likely to land in the early lottery.
But standing still has its own dangers. A disappointing 2026-27 season could drag down ticket sales, and Curry leaving the Warriors would be a revenue disaster for team governor Joe Lacob.
So the challenge for Golden State is clear: make a trade that actually moves the needle, but don’t turn it into a future-killing gamble.
In Other News...
Warriors Are Making A Risky Bet Curry Fans Already Fear
The Warriors have spent much of this offseason acting like a team with one eye on now and the other on a much bigger prize down the road. Rather than loading up on immediate roster help, they have kept additions limited while preserving room for the 2027 offseason, a window they clearly view as their best chance to reshape the franchise around Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler.
The catch is that cap space only matters if the right stars actually hit the market, and that is far from a sure thing. Even if Golden State can keep its books clean, the likeliest payoff may not be a blockbuster chase at all but a more practical one, with the front office targeting the kind of depth pieces that can still move the needle without requiring a full-blown star hunt. [Read more 🡒]
Warriors Missed Again And Now Steph Needs The Front Office To Nail This
The Warriors went into the offseason hoping to swing big, but the market has already pushed them back toward the more practical kind of roster work. With Stephen Curry and Draymond Green still at the center of the plan, Golden State now has to make the most of its remaining flexibility and find pieces that can fit around a core that is trying to stay competitive after a 37-45 finish.
NBA insider Brett Siegel said the front office still has room to maneuver, with open cap spots and a modest pool of money to spend before the apron becomes a real constraint. The names being discussed are more about fit than flash, and one of the more familiar possibilities is a return for Gary Payton II in a reserve role. For a team that just missed on its biggest swing, the pressure now is on the Warriors to get the smaller moves right. [Read more 🡒]
Warriors Fans Have Every Reason To Be Furious Over Jaylen Brown
Before the draft and again later in the season, Boston reportedly reached out to Golden State about Jaylen Brown, setting up the kind of star-level trade talk that can reshape a franchises direction in a hurry. The Celtics ask was enormous, centered on four first-round picks and a pick swap, and for the Warriors it would have meant parting with major draft capital, including the No. 11 pick that eventually became Lendeborg.
Golden State never got past the price tag, and the conversations never moved beyond the exploratory stage. Browns path took a very different turn after that, with Boston sending him to Philadelphia for Paul George, two first-round picks and two second-round picks, a deal that later helped the 76ers land LeBron James. For Warriors fans, the frustrating part is obvious: the team had a chance to chase a premium wing, but the real question is whether the front office passed on the right player at the right time. [Read more 🡒]