The Warriors don’t need to make a move at the NBA’s trade deadline.
But that’s not to say that they shouldn’t.
This .500 team has needs. No, it cannot replace Steph Curry, who is out for a few weeks with a knee injury, but it can upgrade its bench, particularly at center.
And with the trade deadline being Thursday at noon, there isn’t much time to act.
Luckily, deadline deals often come together at the last minute.
Here are three realistic trades I can see the Warriors making:
An old friend returns
Warriors receive: Center JaVale McGee
Mavericks receive: GSW’s 2025 Round 2 Pick (via Charlotte)
Spurs receive: Center James Wiseman, GSW’s 2026 Round 1 Pick (lottery-protected)
The Warriors can reportedly save $133 million in the next two years by trading James Wiseman and taking back no salary in return. Such is the state of the team’s luxury tax bill.
Given how little he has provided the Warriors in three seasons and the fact that his fourth-year option — worth $12.1 million — has already been exercised, there’s no reason not to trade the young center.
Yes, he was the No. 2 overall pick a few years ago, but his cost far exceeds his value to the Warriors right now. Do you imagine that changing by this time next year?
The Warriors have been keen to spend money to win titles, but keeping Wiseman is simply bad business. The risk of him becoming fulfilling his potential is far less than the risk of paying the equivalent of nine figures to an end-of-the-bench player.
Let the Spurs — one of the few teams in the league that has salary cap space and time to experiment — see if they can make Wiseman an NBA center.
For the privilege of taking Wiseman off the Warriors’ hands, Golden State will send a lottery-protected first-round draft pick in 2027. Yes, Wiseman will need a first-round pick attached to him for the Warriors to trade him.
But it’s not a straight salary dump for the Dubs.
No, they’ll bring back former Warrior JaVale McGee in the process. McGee signed with Dallas this past offseason and immediately fell out of the rotation. His contract isn’t small, but it’s not large, either — it’s the mini mid-level exception that will pay $5.7 million in 2023-24 and $6 million in 2024-25.
McGee also hold the distinction of being former Warrior I am most emailed about. It makes no sense and part of the reason I’m suggesting this trade is that I want it to stop.
Also, it’s a good deal: with luxury tax, McGee’s contract is anything insignificant, but the Warriors can actually play him, and he costs half as much as Wiseman.
Dallas will need something back for trouble — a future second-round pick that the Warriors can make sure never actually vests is the kind of toss-away that makes a deal like this work.
Draymond’s protégé in blue and gold
Warriors receive: Center Jarred Vanderbilt
Jazz receive: Center James Wiseman, GSW’s 2026 Round 1 Pick (top-5 protected)
The Jazz, like the Spurs, can take a flier on Wiseman, but they’ll need a lightly-protected first-round pick for the trouble.
The Warriors can’t offer first-round picks in the near future, so removing all but the most extreme protections is the only way to make the 2027 first-round pick attractive. Wiseman isn’t considered the equivalent of a first-round pick anymore.
To be clear: Trading a first-round pick in 2026 is a risk for the Warriors, as Steph Curry’s contract ends after the 2025-26 season, when he will be 38 years old.
Maybe Curry will be the NBA’s Tom Brady and compete for titles until he’s 45 years old.
Maybe not.
But the Warriors have a chance to compete for a title this season and next with Curry still playing outstanding ball, and upgrading at backup center would go a long way to helping the team’s cause.
Vanderbilt has the makings of a perfect Warrior. He moves well off the ball, makes smart decisions when he has it, and is mobile, athletic, and decisive on both sides of the floor. His length makes him an outstanding defender, particularly if he were to be in the Warriors’ “smallball” systems. Offensively, he can shoot the 3 a bit but play above the rim, even as an off-ball cutter.
The best news: he’s on a reasonable contract the Warriors can manage. Next season, he’s set to make only $4.7 million. For a team that is counting pennies — lest the tax man charge them seven cents — that’s a big win.
Dubs add backcourt stopper
Warriors receive: Wing Matisse Thybulle
Pistons receive: Wing Furkan Korkmaz, wing Moses Moody
76ers receive: Wing Alec Burks
Hey, a trade proposal without draft picks. What a concept!
This one is as straightforward as they come. The 76ers move off two solid players that are disgruntled with their minutes, receiving a veteran scorer in return. The Warriors move a young player whose star has faded in the eyes of the team for a young player who, at the very least, can play strong on-ball defense in the playoffs.
Oh, and the Pistons turn a veteran into two young wings that could use a change of scenery.
The issue? It’s a three-way trade. Warriors president of basketball operations Bob Myers has never made a three-way trade in his tenure atop the Dubs’ basketball operations department.
Two-way deals are tricky enough to execute. Involving a third team? It’s amazing anyone can make such moves.
Nevertheless, this would be a coup for all three teams.
For the Warriors, Thybulle might be a short-term rental (he’s a restricted free agent at the end of the year) but his ability to lock up even the best perimeter players in the league would pair perfectly with Draymond Green and go a long way to replacing Gary Payton II’s impact, which was critical for this team last season.
