The Warriors haven’t historically been a particularly active team at the trade deadline, with the D’Angelo Russell-for-Andrew Wiggins deal representing by far the biggest swing team president Bob Myers has taken midseason.
But this year — with the Warriors at 28-26 and possibly trying to maximize their core’s championship window — could be different. The Warriors’ traditional starting five of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, Draymond Green and Kevon Looney has been among the most effective lineups in the NBA, but the rest of the roster, in general, hasn’t produced enough to sustain any consistent play.
According to The Athletic’s Anthony Slater, the Warriors have grown more open to possibly moving young players like James Wiseman and Moses Moody, both of whom have fallen out of Golden State’s rotation for most of the season, in search of upgrades. The trade deadline is Thursday, Feb. 9, at noon PST.
“The noise around the league the last couple of days is an increased willingness from the Warriors to engage in conversation and explore the idea of moving their younger, out-of-the-rotation players if a significant enough upgrade is offered,” Slater wrote Tuesday morning. “There’s a greater whiff of aggressiveness.”
Slater reported that in recent weeks, teams inquiring about Wiseman and Moody have likely lowballed the Warriors. Even if offers become more realistic, the front office may have to swallow some pride by dealing two young players while their value sits close to all-time lows.
Wiseman, the second overall pick in the 2020 draft, received a string of DNPs after being cleared from an ankle injury. He hasn’t been able to fit into Golden State’s system, mainly because of defensive concerns and general feel for the game that hasn’t developed due to his inexperience. Injuries have limited Wiseman to just 60 NBA games and he only played three college games for Memphis.
When he’s been given a chance this year, Wiseman hasn’t been effective. His -5.1 plus-minus ranks 483rd out of 503 players.
Moody, meanwhile, contributed in the postseason during last year’s title run, but has appeared to fall out of favor with GSW’s coaching staff this season. He’s only suited up for 41 of the Warriors’ 54 games and is averaging 14.7 minutes per game. Since January, that number has decreased to 11.8 minutes per game and has included eight games completely on the bench.
Neither Wiseman nor Moody has proven capable of making a difference for the current Warriors’ title defense pursuit.
The Warriors’ luxury tax situation may also incentivize them to move off Wiseman or Moody. As The Athletic’s John Hollinger noted, trading Wiseman would save the Warriors about $51 million in salary and tax this year and an estimated $85 million in salary and tax next year — a total of $131 million in savings. Moody’s contract is less substantial, but any money that comes off GSW’s books could be significant given their repeater tax-payer status.
If a team well below the salary cap believes in either Wiseman’s or Moody’s (or both) potential, perhaps they would exchange a rotational player to give them a change of scenery.
Potentially complicating things are two factors: Stephen Curry’s injury and Bob Myers’ expiring contract. Slater reported that the organization’s deadline approach likely won’t be dictated one way or another by Curry’s knee injury that is expected to knock him out for multiple weeks. Myers, arguably the most successful active executive in the NBA, remains unsigned after this season and may have philosophical differences from ownership.
But if the Warriors do end up making a move, Wiseman and Moody appear to be the most likely outputs.