As the Golden State Warriors sought out an additional star last season, Zach LaVine, who was on the Chicago Bulls at the time, was a name that popped up numerous times in the trade rumors that proliferated around the league, with them and the Sacramento Kings being the only two teams that were ultimately interested in trading for the three-level scorer.
Yet, as the Kings now attempt to strip down their roster, and trade LaVine in the process, it appears as though there is a very limited market for the forward, and, as a result, it appears as though the Warriors seriously doged a bullet in ultimately pivoting to the Jimmy Butler deal.
According to NBA Insider Jake Fischer via The Stein Line, there could potentially be a market for LaVine if he was willing to waive his player option for the 2026-27 season. However, no matter what, Sacramento will have an exceedingly difficult time moving his contract.
Zach LaVine may have been a good fit for the Warriors, but his contract should have been a non-starter
LaVine, by no means, is a bad player. This season, through 15 games, he's averaging 21.4 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists while shooting 39.8% from beyond the arc.
Yet, in trading for him, the Kings made the mistake yet again of ladening their roster with ill-fit talent, and, now that the floor has collapsed from underneath their feet, they have a difficult task ahead of them in even moving on from the talent they have acquired over the past couple of seasons.
As a three-level scorer, LaVIne may have given Golden State the offensive thrust they needed to get over the hump last season in the same way Butler did. Yet, his escalating contract structure has him earning $47 million this season and $48 million next season: a vast overpay by any measure.
Warriors are in an infinitely better spot with Butler on the roster
Hindsight is 20/20, and it has since become clear that the Warriors made the right move in trading for Butler, as he has elevated this team on both ends of the court in a way that perhaps almost no other player would have been capable of.
While he's set to make $110 million over the next two seasons, the various aspects of his game that contribute to winning not only make that contract more desirable across the league if it became necessary to move it, but he is also an infinitely more impactful player on Golden State's roster than LaVine would be.
Therefore, as their cross-state rival continues to be mired in mediocrity, the Warriors can rest assured that they made the right choice at last year's trade deadline.