Zach LaVine to Warriors? One NBA Insider Thinks It’s a Good Idea

For the majority of the offseason, the Golden State Warriors have been searching for ways to improve their roster before the season starts. After the team lost five-time All-Star Klay Thompson to the Dallas Mavericks this summer, the Warriors have been trying to add another star-caliber player to pair with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green.

To the credit of Golden State, the front office did put together a nice contingency plan after the departure of Thompson. They signed guard Buddy Hield to negate the shooting loss, guard De’Anthony Melton, and forward Kyle Anderson.

But the Warriors know that to heavily compete in the loaded Western Conference, they likely need more firepower to keep up. They have been linked with a few star players this offseason, most notably Lauri Markkanen but nothing ever materialized.

Read more: Warriors’ Final Trade Offer for Lauri Markkanen Revealed: Report

NBA insider Marc Spears of ESPN appeared on KNBR to discuss the Warriors and made the case for the team to go after star guard Zach LaVine.

“I think it’s worth taking a chance on Zach LaVine…if you’re going to take a risk on Zach LaVine I think they have the roster to do it with….If he can be healthy, I think he puts the Warriors in a different atmosphere.”

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.@MarcJSpears on a possible off-season target for the Warriors:

“I think it’s worth taking a chance on Zach LaVine…if you’re going to take a risk on Zach LaVine I think they have the roster to do it with….If he can be healthy, I think he puts the Warriors in a different… pic.twitter.com/ReES3X9UGV

— KNBR (@KNBR) August 20, 2024

Golden State has been linked with LaVine this offseason already but reportedly has chosen not to approach the Bulls in trade talks. While LaVine is still a good player, his contract has many teams wary of making a move to acquire his services.

Read more: Warriors Not Pursuing 2 All-Stars Despite Desire To Upgrade Roster

He is scheduled to make $43 million this season, $45.9 million next season, and finally, has a $49.8 million player option in his final year. The level of production that LaVine has shown over the past few seasons hasn’t matched up to the high number on the salary cap.

Injuries have taken their toll on his career as well, limiting the guard to just 25 games a season ago. But in that time, LaVine did produce decently. He averaged 19.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game, while also shooting 34.9 percent from 3-point land.

Landing a player like LaVine may be exciting but it likely wouldn’t move the Warriors closer to being title contenders. His contract alone would hinder roster construction moving forward and Golden State has always been about keeping some level of flexibility within the team.

Golden State will remain patient for now but with Curry getting older, the clock is ticking on the team to field another championship-level roster.