Early return suggests failed Warriors trade was a major mistake for all involved

The Golden State Warriors have made a bright start throughout preseason to date, winning all four games including a last start victory over the Detroit Pistons at Chase Center on Sunday.

But if anything the preseason has only exaggerated one of the Warriors biggest issues -- the roster is too deep with 12 rotation players and now 13 if you want to include Lindy Waters III who has led the team in plus-minus through four games.

Golden State will likely need to make a 3-for-1, perhaps even 4-for-1 trade by the mid-season trade deadline. Ideally they would have done it already, particularly if that one player coming in was a genuine star.

Preseason suggests the Warriors not trading for Lauri Markkanen was a mistake

In a recent article looking at five offseason trades that should have happened, Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report believes a Lauri Markkanen-to-Golden State trade would have been best for all parties involved.

"Trading Markkanen to Golden State would have given Stephen Curry a true No. 2 scoring option, allowed the Warriors at least a chance at winning another title and allowed the Jazz to tank and have a better shot at Cooper Flagg," Swartz wrote.

It's hard to disagree with that based on what we've seen in preseason. With this Warrior team putting a huge emphasis on three-point shooting, can you imagine if they also had a stretch big like Markkanen added to the mix?

The Finnish forward has showed no signs of slowing down so far in preseason, averaging 18.7 points in just 22.2 minutes per game on 41.7% shooting from beyond the arc. He's also led Utah to a 3-1 record in preseason, but that's also the exact issue for the Jazz.

How bad can Utah be with a player as talented as Markkanen on their roster? That was always the primary reason as to why he may have been available, yet Golden State were unwilling to match the high demands before Markkanen renegotiated and extended his contract with the Jazz in August.

The 2023 All-Star is now ineligible to be traded until next offseason, which at by that point he'll be on $46.4 million rather than the $18 million he was initially scheduled to make this season. It could prove to be a missed opportunity for all involved, particularly for the Warriors if their lack of star power becomes more obvious than what its shown so far throughout preseason.