Over the past decade, the Golden State Warriors have had a tremendous amount of success. They’ve won four NBA Championships, been to six NBA Finals, and have missed the playoffs just twice.
Golden State’s sustained success can — in part — be chalked up to the tremendous work of the longtime GM Bob Myers and the rest of the front office. Myers and company made careful calculated decisions for years to ensure that the Dubs would consistently be amongst the league’s best and competing for championships. Under the two-time NBA Executive of the Year’s watch, Golden State hired head coach Steve Kerr and signed Kevin Durant, Andre Iguodala, and Sean Livingston.
Though the majority of Myers’ moves were great, there were a few that didn’t pan out so well. Throughout the years, there were some decisions that were costly and others that were flipped into more positive moves. Nonetheless, Myers wasn’t perfect and made his fair share of mistakes.
8. Golden State Warriors add D’Angelo Russell in 2019
2019 was a strange year for the Golden State Warriors. They entered as title favorites, later came up short in the NBA Finals — thanks to injuries to Durant and Klay Thompson — and then ended the calendar year with a record of 9-26 to start the 2019-20 season.
What changed? Well, for starters, Durant left in free agency to team up with Kyrie Irving on the Brooklyn Nets. The two-time Finals MVP was a huge loss for the Dubs, but they didn’t lose him for nothing. Instead, they arranged a sign-and-trade where they received breakout guard D’Angelo Russell, who was coming off of his first-and-only All-Star selection.
Russell signed a four-year, $117 million contract as part of the move, making it so Golden State didn’t lose the pay slot in which they paid Durant.
The former Ohio State guard’s fit with the Warriors was always going to be a bit strange, with Stephen Curry playing the same position. Unfortunately for the Dubs, Curry hurt himself, and Russell was left with more responsibility than he’d signed up for.
In 33 career games for the Warriors, Russell averaged 23.6 points, 6.2 assists, and 3.7 rebounds per game. His shooting splits were average at 43.0% from the field and 37.4% from beyond the arc. He was fine, but ultimately was never going to have a concrete role with Golden State, due to their star-studded backcourt.
Ultimately, the Warriors dealt Russell to Minnesota halfway through the season in a trade that netted them Andrew Wiggins — which is why this move is the “best of the worst.” At the end of the day, Myers found a way to allow the Dubs to continue to financially fund a competitive roster by maintaining Durant’s pay slot.
7. Golden State Warriors pay Klay Thompson big money following his torn ACL
Another questionable Golden State Warriors decision from 2019 is still affecting the team’s cap sheet to this day. On July 10, 2019, the Warriors signed Klay Thompson to a five-year, $189.9 million contract, less than a month after he tore his left ACL in the NBA Finals.
In fairness to the front office, this move was essentially mandatory and is on this more as a result of bad luck. At this point, Golden State’s No. 11 had been a key part of three NBA Championship teams and had made five trips to the NBA Finals.
Myers and co. were in a difficult spot with Thompson being due for a new deal after such a substantial injury. The sharpshooting guard’s ailment coming so late in the playoff run didn’t help either. It all but guaranteed that he’d miss the entire first year of the lucrative contract.
That he did.
To make matters worse, the bad luck continued to pile up for Thompson and the Dubs. In November of the 2020 offseason, the five-time All-Star was working out and ruptured his right Achilles. The injury caused Thompson to miss his second-straight season while he recovered.
During the two seasons that he was out, the Warriors suffered. They finished with a record of 15-50 in that disaster of a 2019-20 season and then followed it up with a 39-33 season — where they were eliminated in the inaugural Play-In Tournament.
Since then, Thompson has made his return, helped the Warriors win their fourth title since 2015, and has even returned to top form in terms of shooting — logging his most efficient 3-point shooting season since 2018, knocking down 41.2% of his attempts in 2022-23.
6. Golden State Warriors keep and use picks No. 7 and No. 14 in 2021 NBA Draft
The 2021 NBA Draft was a strange spot for the Golden State Warriors. They held two lottery picks, which wound up at No. 7 and No. 14, and used them to select Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody — who are both still on the roster two years later.
Though the Dubs still have both prospects, it’s tough not to wonder if they could’ve landed yet another star-level player by trading the picks. At the time, names like Damian Lillard, Pascal Siakam, and Ben Simmons were all floated as potential prizes in exchange for the draft capital.
After such a short period of time, it’s tough to judge if it was truly a mistake to keep the picks add two young prospects to the roster. However, neither has been able to carve out a sizeable role in head coach Steve Kerr’s rotation just yet.
Kuminga has seen the most playing time of the two, most notably when Andrew Wiggins took time away from the team last season. Once Wiggins was back in the playoffs, the 20-year-old’s role diminished, sparking rumors and reports that he’d seek a trade this summer.
In 137 career appearances for the Dubs, the young forward has averaged just 18.8 minutes each time. He’s put up decent statistics in limited minutes, pouring in about 9.6 points per game on 51.9% shooting.
As for Moody, he’s seen even less run than his draft classmate, appearing in 113 contests for the Warriors and only playing about 12.4 minutes each time. His numbers have reflected the lack of minutes, as he’s averaged just 4.6 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 0.6 assists per game over the two seasons.
In defense of the front office, the decision not to package the picks in a trade didn’t hurt the team. They went on to win the 2022 NBA Championship in the duo’s rookie season. However, the real question mark with this move comes down the line. It’s usually not easy for talented young players to fit in with a veteran core like Golden State’s. Again, the challenge has already seen Kuminga grow frustrated in his smaller role. Will the Dubs regret not bringing in more talent to even further boost the team’s chances of getting Curry and the gang one last title.
Do Moody and Kuminga have futures with the Warriors?
Only time will tell.
5. Golden State Warriors leave talent on the board in 2018
This situation is more of a “hindsight is always 20-20” type of deal, but it makes the list nonetheless. Back on draft night in 2018, the Warriors held the No. 28 selection and took Jacob Evans, a six-foot-six-inch guard out of Cincinnati.
Evans appeared in just 57 total games with Golden State over two seasons, playing just about 10.8 minutes in each. He was then traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves as part of the deal that offloaded D’Angelo Russell in exchange for Andrew Wiggins.
When the Warriors selected Evans, there were still some notable names out there for taking. Both Jalen Brunson and Mitchell Robinson — now of the New York Knicks — were available, as well as Gary Trent Jr., Bruce Brown, and Jevon Carter.
Of course, there’s no guarantee that any of those guys would’ve panned out and found their footing had they been drafted by the Dubs, but all of them could’ve been great additions.
Brunson was named to his first All-Star team last season in New York, while Evans is no longer even playing basketball professionally, per The Akron Beacon Journal. Aside from that, Robinson has proven to be a solid rim protector for the Knicks when he’s healthy, Brown just won an NBA championship with the Denver Nuggets, and Trent Jr. and Carter have proven to be reliable shooters.
4. Golden State Warriors send a pile of draft picks away for Kelly Oubre Jr.
A lot of these mistakes came after the departure of Kevin Durant in the summer of 2019. It makes sense. No GM really plans for the aftermath of a championship dynasty. Durant’s exit was something that could’ve gone either way. There had been rumors of his displeasure, but it was also tough to imagine the star forward walking away from such a great situation in The Bay.
Once Durant officially skipped town, the front office was left searching for his replacement, which ultimately wound up being Andrew Wiggins. That’s why the trade for Kelly Oubre Jr. is even stranger — Wiggins was already on the team.
On November 22, 2020, the Warriors shipped out four second-round picks in exchange for the left-handed wing.
Oubre’s tenure with Golden State wasn’t the best. The team went crashing out of the Play-In Tournament, and then he signed a contract with the Charlotte Hornets. After the trade, Oubre played in just 55 games for the Dubs, starting in 50 of them. He scored 15.4 points per game while burying 43.9% of his attempts from the floor and just 31.6% from beyond the arc.
The risk of Oubre leaving after less than a season in The Bay was always understood. It’s part of the gamble that teams take when trading for expiring contracts. But, the limited success the Warriors saw during Oubre’s short stay makes it tough to justify offloading a quartet of draft picks, even if they were only second-rounders.
3. The Golden State Warriors extend Jordan Poole for 4 seasons
This one had to make the list, right? Backing up the Brinks truck for Jordan Poole wound up being a bit of a premature move for the Golden State Warriors. They signed Poole to a four-year, $123 million — potentially $140 million deal prior to the 2022-23 season.
Fast forward about nine months later, and the Dubs just shipped the 23-year-old to Washington as part of a trade to land Chris Paul. While Paul does have an impressive resume, he’s now 38 and making $30 million next season. The draw of the deal was offloading Poole’s long-term money.
It seemed ever since Poole signed the dotted line, things just went in the wrong direction.
The avalanche started in October of 2022 when Draymond Green connect a punch to Poole’s facing during a preseason practice. Video of the incident leaked online, and things were just never the same. Head coach Steve Kerr even went as far as to say that the incident “compromised” the season.
Once chatter of the punch began to build, Poole wasn’t ever able to string together any sort of consistent play. He had a rollercoaster of a regular season, which culminated in a collapse in the postseason — where he was borderline unplayable. Poole averaged just 10.3 points, 3.5 assists, and 2.2 rebounds per game in the playoffs. The worst of his struggles came from an efficiency standpoint, as he made just 34.1% of his attempts from the floor and 25.4% from deep.
The new CBA didn’t help the value of Poole’s contract. Under the amended rules, teams are punished for overspending. So, the salary dump where Poole became a Wizard was heavily influenced by Golden State’s fear of the “second-apron.”
Poole’s extension may have been rushed. His departure may have also been rushed. Only time will tell, but the young guard’s payday was the first domino to fall in what was a wild exit.
2. The Golden State Warriors pay to offload Andre Iguodala
On July 7, 2019, the Golden State Warriors traded away a staple of their championship core — Andre Iguodala. Golden State agreed to a deal with the Memphis Grizzlies where they offloaded Iguodala, a top-four protected first-round draft pick for 2024, and some cash in exchange for Julian Washburn.
Washburn never appeared in a game for the Dubs and was waived just 10 days after the trade.
The same can be said for Iguodala, who never suited up for Memphis. Instead, he refused to play and eventually forced a trade to the Miami Heat. Once arriving in Miami, the veteran wing played a key role in the team’s surprise run to the 2020 NBA Finals.
Yes, the move was made to free up salary cap space — oddly enough to sign D’Angelo Russell in order for the Warriors to remain competitive after Kevin Durant’s departure. The problem is that they weren’t able to. Immediately after trading Iguodala, Golden State missed the playoffs for the first time since before Bob Myers took over in 2012.
Would keeping the aging forward have helped the Warriors avoid the drop-off? Probably not.
However, they did wind up bringing him back for the 2021-22 season — a year where they won yet another NBA championship.
1. Golden State Warriors draft James Wiseman No. 2 overall in 2020
Following their 15-50 season, the Golden State Warriors found themselves drafting in the No. 2 spot in the 2020 NBA Draft. With a core consisting of a pair of superstar guards, selecting James Wiseman, a center out of Kansas only made sense, right?
On paper, yes. In practice, no.
Wiseman spent just three seasons in The Bay, appearing in just 60 total games. He struggled to fit into Golden State’s fluid offense and didn’t see as much playing time as a result. Plus, the young big man missed the entire 2020-21 season due to a knee injury.
The top high-school recruit in 2019 averaged just 9.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks per game as a member of the Dubs.
His Warriors tenure came to a close in 2023 when he was traded to the Detroit Pistons as part of a four-team deal, which netted the Warriors a reunion with Gary Payton II.
The pick that Golden State used to select Wiseman could’ve been used as part of a trade for another star to play alongside Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. Instead, it essentially went to waste, as the big man never quite fit in with the Warriors.
To add even more salt to the wound, a pair of All-Star guards — LaMelo Ball and Tyrese Halliburton — were taken later in the draft after the Dubs picked Wiseman.
This is another instance of hindsight being 20-20, but the Warriors could’ve handled the 2020 NBA Draft in numerous different ways — most of which would’ve garnered a better result than the route they took.
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The Golden State Warriors have one of the most storied histories in the league. Legends such as Wilt Chamberlain have graced the uniform.