NBA Draft: 4 prospects who can have immediate impact for the Golden State Warriors

Unless an unlikely trade eventuates that sees them move up, back, or completely out of the first-round, the Golden State Warriors will take the 19th overall pick to the 2023 NBA Draft held at Barclays Center on Thursday.

With James Wiseman, Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody and Patrick Baldwin Jr., the Warriors have had a tendency to take young, high-upside players in recent drafts. The question now lays at whether they’ll take a similar approach this time around.

Holding the 19th pick in this week’s NBA Draft, the Golden State Warriors could look at four different prospects with multiple years of collegiate experience.

According to Draft Express and ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, the Warriors are “done with projects” and will instead target a player they believe can contribute immediately within a “Warriors-style of play”.

"“They’re looking for guys who know how to play, who can pass, pass, cut, defend off the ball”, Givony said. “We’re talking about guys like Jordan Hawkins, Brandin Podziemski, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Kris Murray – older, more experienced players who can step in from Day 1.”"

Jordan Hawkins has been the Warriors’ pick in a multitude of previous mock drafts, with the 21-year-old coming off the NCAA championship in his sophomore year at UConn. The 6’5″ shooting-guard averaged 16.2 points and 3.8 rebounds in 37 games this season, shooting a healthy 38.8% from three-point range.

Brandin Podziemski is starting to be linked with Golden State a little more over the last week, having come off an impressive sophomore year with the Santa Clara Broncos. Another 6’5″ shooting-guard, the 20-year-old Podziemski averaged 19.9 points, 8.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 32 games, shooting 48.3% from the field and 43.8% from deep.

Having just completed his fourth year at UCLA, Jaime Jaquez Jr. may be one of the most ready-to-go players available for the Warriors at pick 19. The 6’6″ shooting-guard/small-forward averaged 17.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists, winning the Lute Olson Award as the most outstanding men’s player in the NCAA Division I competition.

The twin brother of impressive Sacramento Kings’ rookie Keegan, Kris Murray may be the best fit for Golden State as a 6’8″ forward with two-way potential. Having averaged 20.2 points and 8.9 rebounds in his junior year at Iowa, the 22-year-old could be a nice three-and-D wing to place behind Andrew Wiggins in the Warrior rotation.

With their free agency capacity set to be limited given financial restraints, it seems clear that Golden State need to buck the trend and target ready-made contributors in the draft come Thursday. If they do go down that route, one of these four prospects may ultimately fit the bill.