Following recent poor form that saw them lose six of seven games, the Golden State Warriors delivered some relief on Sunday with an impressive 114-106 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
It did require another new starting lineup to make it happen, with the Warriors missing Andrew Wiggins due to an ankle injury which led to Gary Payton II and Buddy Hield's insertion to the starting five. Draymond Green also started at center, leaving Trayce Jackson-Davis out of the rotation completely for the first time this season.
Steve Kerr and Golden State made the notable decision to let Jonathan Kuminga loose over the weekend, confirming that the 22-year-old would start at power forward at least for the time being. While they may have made a decision on the talented forward, the Warriors still remain uncertain on other positions they need to address in the starting lineup.
The Warriors are reportedly after a replacement for De'Anthony Melton
One spot Golden State still need to decide on is the shooting guard position next to Stephen Curry in the back court. It's an issue they've been unable to answer since De'Anthony Melton's season-ending injury against the Dallas Mavericks on November 11.
According to Andscape's Marc J. Spears, the Warriors are on the hunt to find a similar-level 3-and-D type player on the trade market, rather than necessarily trying to land a star an out-and-out star.
"I'm hearing that the Warriors are kind of looking more into replacing Melton right now," Spears said on NBA Today on Monday.
Trading for a starter-level two-way guard would rid Golden State of the indecisiveness that's become frustrating since Melton's incredibly disappointing and impactful injury. In fairness to Kerr and the coaching staff, the indecisiveness has certainly been for a reason.
Lindy Waters III started seven consecutive games after Melton's injury, but failed to deliver any impact having shot just 33.8% from the floor and 30.6% from 3-point range over his last 15 games. Brandin Podziemski then made three consecutive starts and appeared like Kerr's solution, only for him to be replaced by Hield who went for a sparkling 27 points on Sunday.
Ideally the Warriors would find another two-way player to start alongside Curry, allowing Podziemski and Hield to each fill the guard minutes off the bench. Who the front office targets on the trade market remains to be seen, with Melton and his $12.8 million contract eligible to be traded from December 15.
ESPN's Shams Charania reported on Tuesday that Jimmy Butler would be interested in joining Golden State as the Miami Heat listen to offers for their 6x All-Star, while the Warriors were also linked to Brooklyn Nets trio Cameron Johnson, Dorian Finney-Smith and Dennis Schroder.