For the first time in quite a few years, the Golden State Warriors found themselves with the luxury of having money to spend in free agency this offseason.
After waiving Chris Paul's non-guaranteed contract and with Klay Thompson signalling his intent to sign with the Dallas Mavericks, the Warriors opened up access to the non-taxpayer mid-level exception and other avenues to lure free agents they wouldn't have necessarily been able to in the past.
Will the Golden State Warriors come to regret missing on a number of realistically gettable free agents this offseason?
Golden State used their new-found financial capacity to sign De'Anthony Melton to a one-year, $12.8 million contract, while Buddy Hield (four-year, $37.8 million) and Kyle Anderson (three-year, $27.7 million) joined via the same sign-and-trade that sent Thompson to the Mavericks.
Most would assess that the Warriors did a good job, with each of the three players likely to feature heavily in Steve Kerr's rotation next season. But could they have realistically done better? Let's take a look at one player from each position that the franchise could regret missing out on:
Point Guard: Tyus Jones (signed with Suns on one-year, $3 million contract)
Perhaps the steal of the entire offseason, Golden State missing out on Tyus Jones is only made worse by the fact the 28-year-old joined a direct divisional rival. After averaging 12.0 points, 7.3 assists and shooting over 41% from three-point range with the Washington Wizards last season, most expected Jones to garner a contract in excess of $10-12 million per season.
Instead, one of the best backup point guards in the league chose to take a one-year prove it deal with a team sorely in need of his ball-handling and playmaking. On the other hand, the Warriors are set to rely on a second-year Brandin Podziemski to handle the non-Stephen Curry minutes next season. While the 21-year-old is immensely talented and could prove up to the task, it's a significant risk to take for a team desperate to return to playoff contention.