The Golden State Warriors may have finished the 2019-20 NBA season as one of the worst teams in the league, but they aren’t expected to remain at the bottom for long. After being given more time to recover from their respective injuries, three of the most important members of their championship core — Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green — are expected to be back to full health next year. The highly anticipated return of their lethal trio to the court is undeniably enough to make Golden State a team to fear in the loaded Western Conference once again.
However, in order to have a better chance of fully dominating the Western Conference and bringing home the Larry O’Brien Trophy in the 2020-21 NBA season, Curry believes that the Warriors should continue to find ways to upgrade their current roster . When asked how he expects their front office to turn things around in the 2020 offseason, Curry told Scott Polacek of Bleacher Report that they “could use some size” and further improve their depth.
“We just need talent,” Curry said. “At the end of the day, that’s what you’re always trying to get. I think we could use some size, but for the most part it’s just trying to fill out the roster and get us as much depth as possible. I like the position that we’re in with the assets that we got and the guys coming back off of injury. I think we’ll get it right, our front office has gotten it right over and over, and I expect nothing different coming back from this tough year we had.”
Targeting quality big men in the offseason would actually make a lot of sense for the Warriors, especially if they are serious about reclaiming the championship title and reviving their dynasty next year. They may still have Green anchoring their defense, but powerhouse teams with dominant big men like the Los Angeles Lakers, Denver Nuggets, Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers, and the Miami Heat could easily take advantage of him being an undersized center.
Luckily, the Warriors have plenty of ways to grant Curry’s request and address their major frontcourt problem this fall. The 2020 free agency may not be as loaded as the previous offseason, but there are still plenty of quality free-agent big men that the Warriors could target. Using the mid-level exception, they could go after the likes of Serge Ibaka, Marc Gasol, JaVale McGee, DeMarcus Cousins, or Dwight Howard.
It also wouldn’t be an issue if the Warriors decide to take the trade route. Aside from having Andrew Wiggins’ massive contract for salary-matching purposes, they also possess the No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft and the Minnesota Timberwolves’ 2021 first-rounder. By using all those assets as trade chips, the Warriors will be in a strong position to target All-Star caliber big men who could potentially be available on the trading block this fall, including Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Rudy Gobert, and Myles Turner.
