The Golden State Warriors do not have a single pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, but after winning a championship, it doesn’t matter in the slightest.
The Golden State Warriors enter the 2017 NBA Draft fresh off a championship, with significant free agency questions, and also without a draft pick to call their own.
In a time where the trend in the league is to hoard picks, however, the Warriors will be just fine in the short-term and the long-term after this year’s draft.
Here’s a quick breakdown of the transactions that led to the Warriors’ situation and why it was worth it in the end.
The first and second round picks in this year’s draft that originally belonged to Golden State (No. 30 and No. 60) were sent to the Utah Jazz in a trade back in 2013 that brought in Andre Iguodala. The second round pick now currently belongs to the Atlanta Hawks.
Although there is some uncertainty now regarding his re-signing with the Warriors, Iguodala has played a tremendous role over the last few seasons. Golden State has two championship trophies and Iggy has an NBA Finals MVP trophy to show for it. Even if he leaves in free agency, which would be shocking, Iguodala helped the Warriors achieve a huge return on their investment.
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A significant reason that the Golden State Warriors will be fine without a draft pick is that they are in an envious position of not having to develop talent rapidly. There are no major gaps in their current roster in that regard.
Their major tasks this offseason are to retain their core with Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Iguodala and Shaun Livingston all expected to become free agents. With the departure of Jerry West, perhaps this is an opportune time to sit on the sidelines of the draft and look forward to the class of 2018.
Even if they don’t buy their way into the second round, the Golden State Warriors will be fine without a draft pick this year largely due to their core of stars —KD in particular — expected to take less money to remain together.
Next: 5 reasons the Warriors will repeat as NBA champions in 2018
Another benefit on their side is that free agents are more willing to sign for less than market value. Despite their positive position though, the Warriors will need to continue to draft well in subsequent drafts and hope for success with those picks. However, on June 22, they will not have to worry about making a decision “on the clock.”