Predicting how big of a trade offer the Golden State Warriors may have on the table for Lauri Markkanen.
After back-to-back disappointing seasons, after winning the NBA Championship in 2022, it's clear that something needed to change for the Golden State Warriors. I'm not sure if that mean for the team to move on from Klay Thompson, but that was part of the collateral damage that took place to begin the offseason.
While the Warriors have scrambled to try and cushion the loss of Klay in free agency, it would also make sense for Golden State to have their sights on a big move in an attempt to not only expand their current core's window but also raise their ceiling in a competitive Western Conference.
With their roster as-is, even after making a few additions after the loss of Klay, the Warriors aren't in a place where they're ready to compete with the top of the West. However, if they were to add a star-level player before the start of next season, that could change. According to recent reports, Lauri Markkanen is one trade target in their sights.
Adding to another report, the Warriors have a "substantial" offer on the table for Markkanen. Even though it's no certainty that the Utah Jazz will trade Markkanen, the interest across the league in him has given them something else to think about.
Predicting the Golden State Warriors' trade offer for Lauri Markkanen
The question is, is the Warriors' "substantial" offer enough for the Jazz to pull the trigger on a deal? That's something we should get the answer to over the course of the next few weeks.
One thing we can speculate about is what the Warriors' offer may look like. Let's take a stab at what the Warriors may have offered Utah.
Let's start with Jonathan Kuminga. It's safe to say that he would almost certainly be included in a deal. The Jazz will likely be looking for a talented young piece in any Markkanen deal, and Kuminga fits the bill. To make the deal work from a financial perspective, the Warriors would have to add another contract, roughly $10 million. The Warriors could use Kevon Looney or Gary Payton II to make it work. Simply because I can't imagine the Jazz would want to take back Andrew Wiggins' contract. But, I suppose you never know.
Now let's talk about potential draft compensation. And this is where it gets complicated. As of late, the Warriors are only eligible to trade two future first-round picks. They could offer unprotected pick swaps if they wanted and have a few second-round picks. But, I'd like to imagine that the Warriors would have to find at least one other first-round pick in order to make this offer appealing.
How they will accomplish that remains to be seen. I don't think trading Wiggins to a third team accomplishes that, but it could be on the table. Maybe they staple Moses Moody to Wiggins and that gets them a late first-round pick?
If so, the Warriors could get to a point where they can offer something similar to this:
There's probably some work to be done with a third team as a potential landing spot for Wiggins but there's a good chance that the odds of this deal coming to fruition falls in Golden State's ability to find a third team to deliver them a future first-round pick.