The Golden State Warriors got the wheels back in motion on Thursday night, beating the second-seed Houston Rockets despite the absence of Stephen Curry and Draymond Green.
Jonathan Kuminga produced a dazzling career-high 33-point performance, once again raising the conversation of whether the fourth-year forward can eventually become the second offensive star the Warriors are yearning for.
The Warriors still face a significant roadblock in trying to trade for a star
Golden State's lack of a second consistent scoring option was evident throughout their five-game losing streak, having particularly been emphasized by the workload on a nearly 37-year-old Curry who's currently dealing with knee issues.
Following Kuminga's huge performance on Thursday, ESPN's Shams Charania reiterated that the Warriors are still in the market for a star ahead of the February 6 trade deadline.
"I'm told that the Warriors are on the real hunt for a star -- a playmaker, a scorer alongside Stephen Curry", Charania said. "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."
.@ShamsCharania says the Warriors are on the trade market looking for a star 👀 pic.twitter.com/owSwf8jsGD
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) December 6, 2024
Having managed their payroll into a far more flexible situation during the offseason, Golden State are in a strong position to make a variety of different moves armed with tradable contracts, young players and future draft assets.
However, there is still one roadblock between the Warriors and acquiring another star player -- the form of Andrew Wiggins. Whereas in the last 18 months the Canadian's poor form was a roadblock because his contract was almost a negative one from a value standpoint, his bounce back season has reiterated his value to Golden State and likely adjusted who they'd be willing to trade him for.
Wiggins is currently averaging 17.5 points and 4.5 rebounds on a career-high 43% from 3-point range, all the while performing as the team's primary perimeter defender. Making $26.2 million this season, Wiggins is still the best path to matching salaries for a star player.
However, the former number one overall pick is back somewhere near his own 2022 All-Star best, meaning the Warriors should only be trading Wiggins for a true superstar. That narrows the pool of players Golden State may be able to target, and therefore their chances of actually executing a trade.
Should the Warriors be trading Wiggins for Brandon Ingram or Jimmy Butler? It's unlikely given the other salary/assets the franchise would need to include to make it happen. Golden State might be better looking for a player on a smaller salary who they can acquire without having to give up Wiggins, which is exactly why a player like Nikola Vucevic -- currently averaging 21.7 points and 9.9 rebounds on 59/47/84 shooting splits -- makes so much sense.