Report: Warriors want to add another star next to Stephen Curry

Report: Warriors want to add another star next to Stephen Curry

After a blazing hot 12-3 start, the Golden State Warriors suffered a five-game losing streak before earning a six-point win over the Houston Rockets Thursday.

Even without De’Anthony Melton–who will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury–this Warriors is arguably their deepest since winning the title in 2021-22. That doesn’t mean they don’t to add to it, however. According to a recent report from ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania on Friday, Golden State’s brass is looking to add another star alongside superstar Stephen Curry.

“I’m told that the Warriors are on the real hunt for a star, a playmaker, a scorer alongside Stephen Curry,” Charania said Friday on NBA Today. “You think back to the summer when they pursued Lauri Markkanen with the Utah Jazz; they made a pitch for Paul George as a free agent with the Clippers.

“And the debate with the Warriors and the teams that look into that situation, for them, are they going to find (a star) externally outside of this roster currently, or will be in-house with a player like Jonathan Kuminga? … The Warriors’ future will be shaped over the next few weeks and the next couple of months before the trade deadline. How can they get that next championship with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green?”

.@ShamsCharania says the Warriors are on the trade market looking for a star 👀 pic.twitter.com/owSwf8jsGD

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) December 6, 2024

At the time of this publishing, the Warriors are the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference at 13-8, just one game behind the Houston Rockets, Dallas Mavericks and Memphis Grizzlies for the No. 2 seed. Even after their recent stretch, they own the league’s seventh-best adjusted NET Rating with the 11th-best offense and fifth-best defense, according to Dunks & Threes.

2024-25 Vendetta NBA Power Rankings: December

Golden State will also be working with cap restrictions, as it is hard-capped below the first apron after using its full non-taxpayer mid-level to sign Melton. According to Spotrac, the Warriors only have roughly $534K to work with, so that’s a very slim margin.

The biggest salary filler they would have to part with would be Andrew Wiggins, who’s on the books for $26.3 million this season, the second-most behind Curry himself. They could also part with a combination of Gary Payton II ($9.1M), Kyle Anderson ($8.8M), Buddy Hield ($8.8M), Kevin Looney ($8M) and Moses Moody ($5.8M), if they decide not to move Kuminga ($7.6M). There are routes they can go, it’s just a matter of who they want, what the price tag is and the other team’s valuations of Golden State’s players (outside of Brandin Podziemski).

The NBA can be a soap opera where stars become available every six months. The biggest question is: Who’s next?

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