2019 NBA free agency tracker: Grades for every deal so far
D’Angelo Russell: 4 years, $117 million (Golden State Warriors)
Warriors are on verge of acquiring Russell, Treveon Graham and Shabazz Napier from Brooklyn, league sources said. https://t.co/4HefUBSNQA
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2019
Golden State and Brooklyn have agreed on a sign-and-trade, sending D’Angelo Russell to the Warriors on a four-year, $117M maximum contract, league sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2019
After losing Kevin Durant, the Golden State Warriors could’ve been content with just re-signing Klay Thompson, pressing pause on the dynasty and taking some time to calculate their next moves as they waited for a late push in March and April. Instead, they’re shaking things up in a major way with a D’Angelo Russell sign-and-trade.
In order to make room for this new max contract, the Dubs are sending Finals MVP Andre Iguodala to the Memphis Grizzlies in a separate deal, attaching a protected 2024 first round draft pick. Dumping a fixture in the team’s championship makeup is cold, especially to pay a flawed player like Russell the max.
However, the Dubs will never be accused of being complacent, and this move brings another star-caliber guard to the backcourt to hold things down until Klay can return. The problem is how Russell will fit in, which is questionable at best — and not just because he and Stephen Curry will struggle to defend opposing backcourts.
Having another ball-handler and playmaker will help Curry on offense, but Russell’s sky-high usage rates throughout his time in the league suggest he’ll face a major adjustment in Golden State, where the ball zips and Curry and Draymond Green handle the brunt of the playmaking. There’s a lot of talent and shooting here, and it’s good the Dubs got younger, but this is an awfully iffy move at this point in time.
Grade: C+