Future Warrior....Giannis???

Oh brother. As if this year wasn't bad enough.

This isn't just on Clutch Points either. They wrote this article after an article from the San Francisco Chronicle opined about how the NBA shutdown might help Golden State trade for Giannis. Bleacher Report suggested that a MIL-GS trade may include Andrew Wiggins and three picks for Giannis. There's a lot going on here.

• What the hell?? Not that this is completely unexpected but damn. We just got to a place of relative competitive balance in the league and now this smh.
• I'm not saying Giannis is going to Golden State and I'm not saying that he isn't. I would just say that if I were Giannis, is committing my prime to a team where the major players are already on the other side of 30 years of age, the best move for me? Steph is 32 and Dray/Klay are 30 now. Giannis is 25 now and would only be turning 30 by the time a potential deal in Golden State ends. And you know how we feel about turning 30. Golden State's window is now because they're old. Giannis is the window, wherever he goes.
• This doesn't feel like KD to Golden State to me. And that one had some bread crumbs. The money matched up, in part due to Steph being on a steal of a deal that he signed early as ankle insurance. This was also the year the salary cap jumped exponentially and allowed the Warriors to swap Harrison Barnes out with KEVIN DURANT. Klay and Draymond played with KD during the Olympics, which set up the infamous call from Dray to KD after they lost Game 7 to the Cavaliers.

• Here, the money matches up. A Wiggins for Giannis trade works, money-wise. But this definitely runs GS into the luxury cap. I know in the past they've said that they will pay it, and I believe them, but we don't know what this pandemic will do the salary cap or the money of the owners. Paying the luxury tax might be a different story on the other side of the Rona. But that's about it. Giannis doesn't play for Team USA in the Olympics because he is selfish and also Greek. None of the Warriors trio were at the All-Star game this year to recruit Giannis. Steph played with Team Giannis in 2019 against Dray/Klay and Team LeBron. Of course, none of this is to say that they didn't or couldn't contact Giannis in other ways. But time and time again, we hear that these stories of guys linking up usually start at the Olympics. KD/Kyrie/Deandre to Brooklyn. Bron/Wade/Bosh to Miami. I've got my eye on what Donovan Mitchell does next after how much time he spent with Kemba/Jaylen/Tatum/Smart on that juggernaut Team USA.
• Are stars dying to go to Golden State now with the way KD's injury situation played out, they flipped Iguodala to save money and their two best players played a combined five games this season? Their third-best player won't stop arguing with a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer that's nearly twice his age or yelling at players better than him and making them go sign with Brooklyn. IS GS what's hot in the streets??
• Andrew Wiggins and three picks?? I'm guessing the picks would be the GS 2020 first-rounder, MIN 2021 first-rounder, and a future unprotected GS first-rounder. I see why Golden State would do that of course, but why would Milwaukee? The GS 2020 pick will be high in a weak draft at the top. The 2021 MIN pick comes in a better draft, but you run the risk of Minnesota winning enough games next season to turn that into a low lottery pick, a la the Grizzlies this year, and the Kings last year. A future GS pick on a team that has Giannis on it does nothing for me.
• How many teams could top that offer? We just saw what it took for Kawhi Leonard in a situation where we pretty much knew that he was headed to the Clippers. Why wouldn't any team that thinks they're close try to trade for Giannis, even if for one year of him? Best case scenario, you win and he stays. Most likely case, you win and he leaves. Worst case, you lose and he leaves. Couldn't Toronto, Oklahoma City, Denver, or New Orleans easily top an offer of Wiggins/picks? We know that Masai Ujiri would at least try to get Giannis in Toronto for a season.

Time will tell, as it always does. I'm not opposed to Giannis in The Bay just as I'm not opposed to him staying in Milwaukee. If I had to guess right now, I think he re-signs in Milwaukee but not on a full four or five-year deal. I think he goes with 2 years + 1 player option year, or maybe a 3+1 if they win before it's time for him to re-sign. Stranger things have happened.