Financing three max contracts and more
Should both Thompson and Durant extend their deals that would take the Warriors luxury tax payments flying past $350 million (per Yahoo Sports) and committing long-term deals to the duo would leave the Warriors cap strapped with a potentially declining roster.
In normal circumstances, there would be few complaints that keeping Durant and Klay is the right call. But both players are searching for long-term contracts in a combined region of $400 million that’s without factoring in a potential Draymond Green extension in 2020.
Achilles and anterior cruciate ligament injuries are often believed to among the worst injuries an athlete can suffer. It is hard to envisage a scenario where both Thompson and Durant can return to the peak of the powers, especially after missing an estimated year of action.
The Warriors were cap strapped in the 2018-19 season as shown by their lack of free agency activity and inability to avoid the luxury tax by paying five All-Stars. This left many holes in the roster and those deficiencies were exposed to the fullest by the Raptors.