As the Golden State Warriors continue to struggle to string together wins, having now settled into a 11-12 record as they have passed the quarter-mark of the season, it may soon come time for them to pull the trigger on a trade.
Yet, their biggest trade piece this season, Jonathan Kuminga, is not eligible to be traded until January 15th, meaning that any move they make in the meantime cannot utilize his salary in order to bring back a bigger fish. Therefore, a potential trade proposed by Marc Delucchi at Golden State of Mind may, unfortunately, be their most realistic option to improve the roster for the time being.
The trade involves swapping struggling veteran Buddy Hield and a future second-round pick to the Utah Jazz in exchange for Georges Niang: a player who would immediately elevate the Warriors' consistency and level of play in their frontcourt.
While moving on from Hield would represent a frustrating end to his, largely inconsistent, time in The Bay, adding a player of Niang's caliber could be the type of preliminary move that helps turn Golden State's season arond.
As frustrating as it may be, it could be time to move on from Buddy Hield
So far this season, the Warriors' offense has, to put it lightly, struggled to find its footing. As of now, they are 23rd in the NBA in offensive rating, 22nd in points per game and an uncharacteristic 15th in 3-point percentage.
While many of their role players have been rather inconsistent, Hield has been among the least reliable. Although he has found his footing from a scoring perspective recently, he still is shooting 29.9% from 3-point range on the season, and Golden State has a whopping -8.5 net rating in his minutes on the court.
Niang, although he has yet to play this season as he recovers from a fractured foot, is nearing his return and could represent a more dependable presence as well as a better positional fit for the Warriors. Last season, through 79 games between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Atlanta Hawks, he averaged 9.9 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists while shooting 40.6% from beyond the arc.
A trade for Niang is certainly not the splash move that Warriors fans may be hoping to see (especially with Giannis Antetkounmpo now potentially entering the market). However, any move of a higher caliber they may choose to make this season will be spurred by Kuminga's contract, and, given the way the season has gone so far, it is possible that they cannot afford to wait until mid-January to pull the trigger on a deal.
Doing so, however, would likely come at the cost of Hield. When Hield joined the team, there was much hope that he cold fill the gaping hole alongside Steph Curry that Klay Thompson left behind. While he has certainly had some special performances as a Warrior, his inconsistent play and lack of defensive viability has harmed the team too many times.
Yet, as Delucchi notes, swapping Hield for Niang would also grant Golden State an additional $1 million in flexibility between them and the second apron. Therefore, as painful as it might be to give up on a player who has ingrained himself as quickly as Hield has, it could be the right move for the Warriors to make.