WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS?

The Golden State Warriors rollercoaster of a season has come to a crashing halt after their loss to the Sacramento Kings in the NBA Play-In Tournament on Tuesday night. The Warriors were simply outplayed by their Northern California rivals, as Sacramento used a massive third-quarter surge and dominated the second half to blow the game wide open.

Stephen Curry couldn't repeat his masterclass 50-point performance in Game 7 of their first-round series win over the Kings last year, as he wound up with just 22 points and six turnovers. The story of the night, however, was Klay Thompson's scoreless evening as he missed all of his 10 shots from the field, including six from beyond the arc.

Now, the Warriors look ahead to an offseason of uncertainty with so many questions regarding whether this core, headlined by the triumvirate of Curry, Thompson, and Draymond Green, can still win an NBA championship together. With such a bitter ending to a tumultuous 2023-24 campaign, where do the Warriors go from here?

Klay Thompson's Impending Free Agency

Thompson will be an unrestricted free agent this season

Everything will start with Klay Thompson, who will become an unrestricted free agent, in the offseason for the Warriors. There were a ton of questions about Thompson's future in Golden State throughout the year given his poor play. After Tuesday's disastrous performance to end the season, the uncertainty grew even further.

Through the majority of the season, the 34-year-old looked like a shell of himself. After leading the NBA in three-pointers made last season, Thompson didn't find the same success this year. He still shot a decent clip from beyond the arc by NBA standards at 38.7 percent. But it wasn't the Klay Thompson standard that Warriors fans expected.

Thompson reportedly turned down a two-year, $48 million extension from the Warriors this past summer. But after the season he had, and with the way it ended, he will likely need to take a massive paycut if he wants to remain in The Bay Area. Thompson has gone on record saying he wants to finish his career in Golden State and that he can't imagine himself playing in a different uniform.

But given the way the Warriors season turned out, it might be time for a change.

Dubs head coach Steve Kerr, however, said he wants Klay to be back next season. Draymond Green also echoed the same sentiments, while Stephen Curry doesn't seem to be ready to part ways with his Splash Brother.

Regardless of all the noise, the Warriors have made it clear that they have no intention of splitting up the trio of Curry, Green, and Thompson.

What will the Warriors do with Chris Paul?

CP3 is on a non-guaranteed contract for next season

Regardless of what happens to Klay Thompson, changes will need to be made in Golden State. How big those changes will depend on whether the front office still believes this nucleus is capable of hanging another banner in the rafters of Chase Center.

Bringing back Thompson will likely be the Warriors' main priority in the offseason. However, there are still a ton of questions regarding the other pieces in Golden State.

Apart from Thompson, the Warriors will also need to make a decision on whether they want to bring veteran guard Chris Paul back. The Dubs shocked the world when they acquired their old rival last summer.

But for the most part, Paul became a valued piece in Steve Kerr's rotation and made a big sacrifice by coming off the bench for the first time in his career. He primarily served as Steph Curry's backup and helped anchor Golden State's second unit, which was among the top in the NBA.

CP3 is on a non-guaranteed deal worth $30 million for next season. They could either guarantee his contract and use it as a salary piece to acquire another star, or not guarantee it and look to re-sign him to a much smaller contract for next season.

Steve Kerr already went on record saying that he loved coaching the soon-to-be 39-year-old this season, and he hopes they can run it back with him next year.

Andrew Wiggins could also be on the move

Wiggins had the worst year of his career this season

Due to their early season struggles, several Warriors players, including Paul, found themselves in trade rumors throughout most of the campaign. The player who heard his name the loudest, however, is Andrew Wiggins.

The former All-Star had a brutal start to the season and was seen as the player the Warriors would have likely traded prior to the February deadline. Of course, Golden State opted to keep him, and he rewarded the team with much better play down the stretch of the season.

Nonetheless, it is still worth wondering whether trading the Canadian is still in the mind of Warriors GM Mike Dunleavy. If the Warriors decide to go star-hunting this summer, Wiggins' $26.3 million price tag would be an ideal salary piece to include in a blockbuster deal.

With that, they will likely also need to part ways with draft picks, as well as some of their promising young players, who have been terrific all season long.

Do The Warriors Keep Their Young Guys?

The Warriors could jumpstart a youth movement or trade the young core for more vets

Speaking of, the Warriors' young guys consisting of Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody, Brandin Podziemski, and Trayce Jackson-Davis injected some much-needed youthful energy into this veteran-laden squad.

Despite some turbulence along the way, Kuminga had a grow-up campaign that saw him become the Warriors' second-leading scorer behind Curry. His numbers rose to 16.1 points and his defense, particularly his on-ball perimeter defense, showed some improvement. However, there are still holes in the athletic forward's game, such as his discipline and decision-making, that has sometimes forced Steve Kerr to go in another direction. Still, it's hard to deny that Kuminga's talent is there and at just 21 years old, the sky could be the limit for this kid down the road.

Moody, meanwhile, has failed to crack a regular spot in Kerr's rotation. But when he gets a chance, he always seems to stay ready and makes winning basketball plays in his limited time on the court.

Mike Dunleavy Jr. also deserves his flowers for absolutely nailing the 2024 NBA Draft. Podziemski, the 19th overall pick in the draft, became a key fixture in Steve Kerr's rotation due to his do-it-all play. Kerr couldn't keep the kid off the floor because of the energy and hustle he provided on a nightly basis. As a rookie, he led the NBA in charges drawn this season.

As for Jackson-Davis, he became the rim-protecting, lob-threat the Warriors envisioned James Wiseman to be — and they got him at No. 57 in last year's draft. In fact, the 24-year-old earned a starting role for Steve Kerr through the final stretch of the campaign.

These four young players became a big part of the Warriors' 2023-24 campaign. But if Golden State intends to make a big splash this summer, they might need to part ways with at least two of them to land a star player and maximize whatever prime 36-year-old Steph Curry still has.

The Biggest Offseason in the Curry-Thompson-Green Era

All eyes are on Mike Dunleavy Jr.

Warriors GM Mike Dunleavy Jr. will have his work cut out for him this upcoming summer. With Thompson's impending free agency, and the way the Warriors' season ended, he will have a lot on his plate as Golden State looks to get back onto the drawing board to salvage whatever remnants are left of their dynastic run.

In the same way, Dunleavy might be the man who will finally put an end to this dynasty. If this was the end of Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson in The Bay Area, what a ride it has been.

As laid out above, there are a lot of decisions that need to be made. But with the way the Warriors finished out the regular season, is this formula still worth running back? Or will a new era officially begin when the ball is tipped up in the air in October?

2024-04-19T04:22:02Z dg43tfdfdgfd