Golden State Warriors reportedly not “high” on potential No. 1 pick LaMelo Ball
The Golden State Warriors are destined to have one of the top picks in the 2020 NBA Draft, and they’re slowly giving hints at who they have their eye on.
Still one of the best organizations in the league, the Golden State Warriors will look to bounce back next season. They are currently 15-50, having 17 still to play, and are the only team not in playoff contention.
Initially, they traded their 2020 first-round pick to the Brooklyn Nets, a deal that brought Golden State D’Angelo Russell. That pick was top-20 protected, and with the Warriors a team at the bottom of the West, they’ll see that pick come back home.
They officially retained that pick a few weeks prior to the season’s suspension.
But, as we already plan for the offseason for Golden State, looking at who they should draft will be of utmost importance, especially since they’ll have the best odds at landing the top overall pick in the lottery.
The team is apparently already starting to cut down on who they plan to pursue in the draft, and two of the top three projected picks are not on their radar. Those two are point guard LaMelo Ball and center James Wiseman.
Ball and Wiseman don’t seem to be in the team’s plans moving forward, according to Connor Letourneau of the San Francisco Chronicle:
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"According to multiple league sources The Chronicle contacted in the past few days, the Warriors — contrary to what mock drafts might suggest — aren’t believed to be high on two of the three players being mentioned as possibilities at the No. 1 pick: former Memphis center James Wiseman and point guard LaMelo Ball, who last played for the Illawarra Hawks of Australia’s National Basketball League. As one source put it, “I think they’d only take one of those two if they were trading down in the draft and taking them for another team.”"
Ball, who just reportedly purchased the Illawarra Hawks, is projected to be one of the top picks in the upcoming draft. However, his fit with the Warriors has always been in question since they just dealt point guard D’Angelo Russell.
A player like Anthony Edwards, a small forward also at the top of many columnist’s big boards, seems to be who Golden State would be more interested in. Even Dayton’s Obadiah Toppin, Obi Toppin, would be a solid fit.
That said, Ball was inefficient during his time with the Hawks, despite possessing elite vision. That might be concerning for the Warriors as they plan to make another trip to the NBA Finals this coming season.
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At the end of the day, we don’t know who the Warriors will take if they get the No. 1 overall pick, but they’re starting to help us cut down who they won’t take.