The Golden State Warriors have a number of players in consideration for their 11th overall pick at this month's NBA draft, but recent reports suggest they could be giving up on one intriguing prospect.
Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints has poured cold water on the Warriors interest in Karim Lopez, the 6'8" forward out of Mexico who has played the last two seasons in Australia's NBL and who was recently compared to Orlando Magic star Franz Wagner.
Warriors may give up on Karim Lopez as potential option at 11th overall
Lopez has been seen as a potential option for the Warriors in multiple different mock drafts, yet Siegel reported on Monday that the franchise could be targeting a host of different options rather than the 19-year-old.
..."Multiple personnel have told ClutchPoints that the hype surrounding him in this spot has been a little blown up. Lopez could realistically go anywhere from 10-to-22 in the draft, but word right now regarding him and the Warriors is that he is not as high on their list as others," Siegel wrote.
Only time will tell if this report firstly proves correct, and secondly whether passing on Lopez for a different prospect will prove the right decision for Golden State as they continue to try and balance short and long-term ambitions.
The Warriors now infamously passed on Wagner to take Jonathan Kuminga seventh overall at the 2021 NBA Draft, with that decision now proving a costly and collosal mistake given the respective careers of the two throughout their first five seasons.
Still relatively young as a teenager, Lopez offers plenty of upside as an impactful piece on both ends of the floor, yet his two years of professional basketball overseas suggests he could be more ready to contribute than many 19-year-olds who come out of college.
Karim Lopez compared to Franz Wagner and other versatile forwards
Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman recently compared Lopez to Wagner and had him going 11th to the Warriors, while Kevin O'Connor of Yahoo Sports sees shades of a less athletic version of Denver Nuggets champion Aaron Gordon.
Lopez averaged 10.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.0 block and 0.9 steals per game over his two years in the NBL, shooting an efficient 48% from the floor but only 31.8% from 3-point range which demonstrates a clear skill to be developed by whoever takes him in the first round.
It doesn't appear like the Warriors will be the team taking the chance on Lopez based on Siegel's report, but that only adds more intrigue to who they're truly targeting in what's seen as an incredibly strong draft.
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