Charles Bassey's late season impact proves the Golden State Warriors could do with an athletic center in the middle of their prime, only Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers may be already best placed to acquire a valuable one this summer.
Daniel Gafford's name is bound to come up in trade discussions again, and so much so that the Lakers and a reunion with Doncic have already been floated as one of the most impactful potential deals of the offseason.
Warriors should fear potential Luka Doncic-Daniel Gafford reunion
ESPN have proposed a trade that would see the Lakers acquire Gafford from the Dallas Mavericks for the reasonably low price of Jarred Vanderbilt, Dalton Knecht and this year's first-round pick which sits 25th overall.
"The Lakers adding Gafford and preserving cap flexibility is a start to building the roster around Doncic," front office insider Bobby Marks wrote. "When Doncic and Gafford were on the court together during the 2023-24 season, Dallas was plus-9.8 points per 100 possessions and allowed 105.2 points per possessions in the regular season, per Cleaning the Glass."
Those are the kind of numbers that should terrify the rest of the league given it would provide the Lakers a major upgrade from this year's center duo of Deandre Ayton and Jaxson Hayes. Golden State, in particular, should fear such a move because they've got to see their pacific rival four times during the regular season, and could forseeably be fighting with them for a playoff spot.
Gafford's rim protection was a major boost to the Mavericks when he was acquired during the 2023-24 season, helping the franchise to the NBA Finals where they lost to the Boston Celtics. It's Doncic's ability to spoon-feed rim-running big men that can unlock Gafford though, having failed to have the same impact since the Slovenian superstar was traded to the Lakers last year.
Warriors could do with a Daniel Gafford-type player
The bigger frustration with a Gafford-Lakers trade from a Warrior standpoint might be that he's the exact type of player they could do with, particularly in trying to complement the focus on stretch bigs over the past 18 months.
Bassey was a breath of fresh air in that aspect over the final five games of the regular season, suggesting Golden State could do with a more proven, experienced version that can offer consistent two-way presence in the paint.
Gafford would be exactly that, but he also makes simply too much sense playing alongside Doncic, suggesting this is actually a deal that could come to fruition this offseason.
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