The Golden State Warriors will look to the buyout market and other unsigned players to fill the remainder of the roster, having given up four players in the blockbuster trade for Jimmy Butler on Wednesday.
The buyout market is already starting to materialize itself with possible players the Warriors could sign, headlined by 3x All-Star Ben Simmons who is finalizing a buyout with the Brooklyn Nets as first reported by ESPN's Shams Charania on Friday.
Ben Simmons could be the Warriors next reclamation project
When Andrew Wiggins joined the Warriors via a trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2020, he was widely viewed as an underwhelming former number one overall pick who simply wasn't fulfilling the talent he possessed.
Wiggins has now left in the Butler trade as a far different player -- an All-Star, NBA champion and as an incredibly valuable two-way player who is going to be a great addition for the Miami Heat. Golden State helped turn Wiggins around, and they reaped the benefit as the Canadian became the second-best player on a championship team.
Now, Simmons' value as a player has fallen far lower than Wiggins' ever was. Even with the Timberwolves he was putting up decent numbers, was never injured and never had the same commitment issues.
Can Simmons turn his career around some four years after his last All-Star Game? Until that point the Australian was a dynamic and athletic 6'10" point guard who could guard 1-5 on defense, having averaged 14.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, 6.9 assists and 1.6 steals in 2020-21 while finishing second in Defensive Player of the Year and 12th in MVP voting.
Since then Simmons has become a shell of himself, particularly as someone who's now in the final year of a five-year, $177.2 million contract. He's still only 28-years-old, having put up 6.2 points, 5.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists in 25 games with the Nets this season.
From an on-court playing standpoint, Simmons complete lack of shooting (and now scoring) would be problematic for a Warrior team that already lacks just that. However, his ball-handling, passing and versatile defense should actually fit into the Golden State system. How he'd mesh with ultra competitors like Butler and Draymond Green is a significant question mark, but maybe that's just what he needs to revitalize his career.
Green could also be a decent mentor for Simmons from a playing standpoint, with both holding similarities in size, ball-handling, playmaking, defense and limitations scoring-wise. Perhaps they would therefore overlap too much, but Simmons could be more so a replacement for Kyle Anderson who departed for the Miami Heat in the Butler trade.
Simmons has already been linked to the Cavaliers, Clippers and Rockets as potential destinations, yet perhaps the Warriors should get involved as a reclamation project that could have significant upside.