Warriors "had very serious conversations" on two trade targets before deadline

Despite plenty of speculation and reported activity ahead of the trade deadline, the Golden State Warriors ultimately did little outside sending Cory Joseph to the Indiana Pacers for a second-round pick.

The Warriors decision to remain idle emanated from more positive play over the last few weeks, with that having continued with three wins since the deadline passed to give them a 7-1 record across their last eight games.

The Golden State Warriors reportedly "had very serious conversations" on Alex Caruso and Kelly Olynyk before the trade deadline

But just because Golden State didn't make a significant deal, doesn't mean they weren't trying to get something done to upgrade their roster. Reports of trade conversations continued to emanate almost immediately after the deadline, and have continued in the days following.

ESPN's Ramona Shelburne reported on Monday's episode of NBA Today that the Warriors "were down the road" in talks with the Chicago Bulls and Utah Jazz on Alex Caruso and Kelly Olynyk.

"They were down the road and had very serious conversation about Alex Caruso, about Kelly Olynyk. Teams were calling about Andrew Wiggins. When it got down to it, from what I'm told everyone asked for Jonathan Kuminga and they essentially said, 'we are never trading Kuminga, he's untouchable so don't even ask'."

- Ramona Shelburne

NBC Sports Chicago's K.C. Johnson reported on Thursday that the Bulls and Warriors had exploratory talks on a Caruso trade, yet they were shut down when Chicago inquired on the availability of Jonathan Kuminga.

The Bulls were evidently uninterested in dealing Caruso, with their asking price for the 29-year-old clearly too steep for the Warriors and a number of playoff contending teams in need of a high-end role player.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Golden State's interest in Olynyk on Wednesday night, but that was short-lived as the Jazz dealt the 32-year-old to the Toronto Raptors, along with Ochai Agbaji, for Otto Porter Jr., Kira Lewis Jr. and a 2024 first-round pick.

The salary of both Caruso and Olynyk would have made things awkward for the Warriors, with the front office ultimately content to push forward with their current roster as they seek another playoff appearance.