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Generally, in the NBA Front Office world, trading a player after one subpar postseason run would be pretty irrational, especially if that player has already proven that he can contribute positively to a championship roster in years past. For the Warriors, that player would be Jordan Poole, who had signed a 4-year, 128 million dollar extension at the start of the season just to barely average double digits on mediocre (and that's being generous) efficiency. The Warriors are clearly, and understandably, employing a "win-now" mentality with Steph Curry showing no signs of regression and still under contract for at least 3 more seasons. However, that means that there will be less leniency and patience towards youngsters like #2 pick James Wiseman, who got traded for essentially a "win-now" role player, and Jordan Poole, who is still trying to find his rhythm and pace as an NBA guard. Though he does provide a unique offensive skillset for the Warriors that is similar to Steph Curry's, this past postseason run has shown that Poole provides far more negatives than positives to the win-now Warriors. Perhaps it was because of the infamous preseason punch or the missed game-winner in Game 1 of Round 2, but Poole has fallen off tremendously this postseason, and when his shot isn't falling, he is almost unplayable, due to his attitude, lack of effort, and inabilities on defense. Poole is still extremely young with clear talents and could refind himself this offseason, and by no means am I calling for the Warriors to get rid of Jordan Poole at all costs; however, if these 3 possible trades packages, listed below, are in discussion, whether it's the Warriors offering the trade package to the opposing franchise or vice versa, the new Warriors front office should highly consider these potential deals.
1. Jordan Poole, Patrick Baldwin Jr, + 2023 First for OG Anunoby + Chris Boucher
For both the Toronto Raptors and Golden State Warriors, this trade makes sense. For the Raptors, they've already declared that they want a complete reset of their roster with more young, high-potential players. This trade is contingent on the fact that the Raptors don't trade for Portland's 3rd overall pick with either OG Anunoby or Pascal Siakam, as they would most likely take star point guard Scoot Henderson, with mitigates Poole's value to the Raptors. However, assuming no big-time trades go down for the Raptors, this trade could be of immense value to a team seeking to go in a new direction. Fred VanVleet will likely leave the Raptors, leaving them with a huge hole at the guard spot. Enter Jordan Poole, who has already proven to be a great scorer with a deep bag and has shown signs of playmaking potential. If Gary Trent Jr. doesn't also leave, and that's a big if, then a scoring guard-duo of Poole and Trent could be quite exciting. At the very least, if both Trent and VanVleet leave, then the Raptors still have a guard on their roster that has genuine upside. Patrick Baldwin, a former 5-star recruit and projected top-10 pick, also offers good upside with a build and game similar to that of Michael Porter Jr's. Even on a championship-contending team, Baldwin managed to carve up some minutes on the Warriors as a rookie and showed some true potential in regards to his shooting stroke. In a pretty deep 2023 Draft Class, the 19th pick could provide some great value for the Raptors as well, with players like Dereck Lively from Duke, Brice Sensabaugh from Ohio State, and Leonard Miller from G-League Ignite, potentially still on the board, all of whom have great physical tools, are young, and have great potential for a team seeking to rebuild. As for the Warriors, the package of Anunoby and Boucher would be a dream. The Warriors won't be taking on any lucrative, expensive contracts, and both Anunoby and Boucher offer tools that the Warriors need most: consistent defense, good shooting, and most importantly, size. The league has become a 3-D league now, and Anunoby is the textbook definition of a 3-D player to pair alongside the Splash Brothers. Boucher, though he's a big, can play with Green or Looney due to his shooting stroke while also providing athleticism and shot-blocking. Overall, this trade seems the most likely, with both teams obtaining key positions of need that fit their agenda or timeline while giving up players that are expendable (in the franchises' eyes).
2. Jordan Poole + Ryan Rollins for Dorian Finney-Smith, Nic Claxton, + a 2025 First from PHX
For another team stuck in no man's land, acquiring Jordan Poole could actually be of benefit to the Brooklyn Nets. Their top guards, Spencer Dinwiddie and Joe Harris, only have one year in their contract left, and frankly, their guard rotation outside of those two players is lackluster, assuming Ben Simmons doesn't make some historic, magical comeback. The Brooklyn Nets seemed to have struck gold by acquiring Mikal Bridges, who averaged almost 26 points a game as a Net, and there's no better duo than a ball-dominant yet skilled guard and a 3-D wing. Even if Dinwiddie and Harris resign, Poole can still seamlessly fit into the Nets' roster, with a guard-duo of Poole and Dinwiddie while Harris comes off the bench or plays the SF position. Ryan Rollins is simply there to make the contracts somewhat add up for both teams. As for the Warriors, though the players they get back aren't players with big names or players with as much potential as Jordan Poole, they both do fit the Warriors' mentalities of win-now and team-first. Finney-Smith is another solid, experienced veteran who is a 6'7 3-D wing, but the true value of this trade for the Warriors comes with Nic Claxton. He has established himself as one of the best, most versatile defensive players in the league, with the ability to obviously block shots (as the league leader in blocks last season) but also switch onto smaller guards, something the Warriors do a lot on defense. However, the downsides are that he is also in the last year of his contract and he almost certainly can't be played together with Looney and Draymond at the same time. To compensate, the Warriors get a 2025 first-round pick from Phoenix, which may prove to be valuable if the Phoenix experiment doesn't work out. This deal isn't flashy and won't get the Warriors' fanbase excited, but at the end of the day, it gives the Warriors what they need: size and defense.
3. WILDCARD: Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole, + 3 Firsts for Al Horford + Jaylen Brown
Out of all the trades, this is probably the one that's least likely. However, it's always fun to throw a wild shot, right? But seriously though, this trade does actually work for both teams. Jaylen Brown has expressed frustrations playing for the Celtics under Jayson Tatum's shadow, and after Boston's fallout this postseason, there's a big chance Brown may be moved. The Warriors (and quite frankly any team) would love to have Jaylen Brown due to his size, isolation ability, athleticism, defensive instincts, and shotmaking. His value may have even tanked this postseason due to his performance in the Eastern Conference Finals, but again, one bad postseason should not dictate the narrative for a player (this may sound hypocritical in an article discussing trades surrounding Jordan Poole, but again, we are not actively calling for Jordan Poole to be traded!) The Warriors also take on the expiring contract of 37-year-old Al Horford who may not provide much value anymore despite being paid 10 million dollars a year. As for the Celtics, they get Andrew Wiggins, who won't have the same ego as Jaylen Brown and has proven to be willing to be second-fiddle and play alongside other stars like Jayson Tatum. Wiggins still provides what Brown provided for the Celtics: defense, length, size, athleticism, and isolation ability, though Brown's scoring and shooting are much better than Wiggin's. The Celtics can also afford to take on Poole since they have one of the best defensive guards ever in Marcus Smart to cover up for any of Poole's defensive mistakes. A 3-guard rotation of Smart, Poole, and Brogdon seems like the perfect compliment to Jayson Tatum, and when Tatum is having an off-night, Poole can certainly step in to get his own, offering a lethal scoring punch. And, if any team could change the mentality of Poole and make him more disciplined, it would be Joe Mazzula and the Celtics' organization, known for toughness and discipline. Obviously, when trading for a star like Jaylen Brown, an abundance of picks must be included, and who doesn't like first-round picks, am I right?
Again, we are not calling for Jordan Poole to be traded, and honestly, he still offers immense value to the Warriors despite all the perceived negatives he might have. However, the Warriors' front office would not be doing its job if it weren't listening to trades and seeking to improve its roster, and so if any of these 3 trades are brought up, they should, and most likely will, be heavily considered. Which trade, if any, would you want, Dub Nation?
