Quinten Post’s exit to the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday left the Golden State Warriors with a clear opening in the frontcourt, and it’s the kind of hole that a blockbuster move for Anthony Davis could fill immediately.
Davis has already been tied to Golden State as the team chases his former Lakers championship teammate LeBron James, and the appeal goes beyond name value. At 33, Davis would give the Warriors another big body and a major piece for next season’s roster construction.
The need is real even after Golden State brought back veteran centers Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford over the past two weeks. Both come with age and injury concerns, which is why the Warriors still need a third center option they can trust.
That was supposed to be Post. The 2024 second-round pick, taken 52nd overall, had started 49 games across his two seasons with the team and gave Golden State the sort of seven-foot floor-spacing look they wanted as a backup big. The Warriors extended him a qualifying offer to make him a restricted free agent, but Memphis stepped in Monday with a three-year, $30 million deal the Warriors were never going to match because of their payroll situation and their ongoing pursuit of James.
Davis brings his own health questions, of course. He has played only 29 games since the blockbuster Luka Doncic trade early last year, and he hasn’t played at all as a member of the Washington Wizards since being acquired at February’s mid-season deadline.
That makes the idea of a Davis-Porzingis-Horford rotation both tantalizing and risky. It might be the most injury-prone big-man group in the league, but it also has real talent. The hope would be that Rick Celebrini and the medical staff can help keep at least two of the three available throughout the regular season.
There’s also a path for Golden State to soften the blow if the front office goes that route. If the Warriors trade Jimmy Butler for Davis, they may still have enough room to bring back Charles Bassey as the 15th man on the roster as insurance. Add in the inevitable Draymond Green minutes at small-ball five and a two-way big such as Graham Ike or Lachlan Olbrich, and the Warriors could at least build enough depth to survive the regular season with Davis, Porzingis and Horford in the mix.
In Other News...
Lakers Linked To Rare Wing Target They Almost Never Can Land
The trade market has a way of turning familiar names into luxury items, and this latest wing target fits that mold for the Warriors. He is the kind of role player who checks a lot of boxes at once, with shooting, defense and enough athletic pop to matter on both ends, which is exactly why teams like Golden State keep ending up in the conversation whenever a rare two-way wing becomes available.
What makes the situation worth watching is that the fit is obvious even before any real deal gets reported. The price tag is substantial, but so is the appeal for a Warriors roster that can always use more size and versatility on the perimeter, and that is why this is the sort of player who tends to linger in rumor season without actually becoming easy to acquire. [Read more 🡒]
Lakers May Be Backing Off Kuminga For A Stunning Veteran Pivot
The Lakers offseason has already taken a sharp turn with LeBron James telling the team he will continue his career elsewhere, opening the door for a roster build that now appears centered on Luka Doncic. Los Angeles has moved quickly, trading for Walker Kessler and adding several free agents, while also keeping Jonathan Kuminga in the mix as a young wing target who could fit the next phase of the plan.
Kuminga remains the name to watch, but the Lakers are clearly keeping their options open as they sort through the market. If that pursuit stalls, the front office may have to pivot again, and the possibility of adding a proven veteran wing would give the team a very different kind of answer on the perimeter as it tries to round out the roster. [Read more 🡒]
Warriors Just Got Pushed Toward A Risky Anthony Davis Decision
The Anthony Davis chatter has already put Golden State in a familiar spot: weighing a big-name swing against the kind of price tag that can reshape a roster for years. ESPNs Shams Charania reported that Washington is driving a hard bargain in any potential Davis deal, and the Warriors are left sorting through whether a move that dramatic is even worth the cost, especially with no agreement anywhere close to being done.
If that path gets too steep, the Warriors have other ways to chase a major upgrade, with Pelicans wing Trey Murphy III emerging as one of the more intriguing alternatives. The challenge there is hardly small either, since any serious pursuit would still force Golden State to navigate tricky salary-matching decisions and a hefty draft-pick outlay, which is why this is looking less like a simple trade chase and more like a test of how far the front office is willing to go. [Read more 🡒]