Mike Dunleavy Jr., the new general manager of the Golden State Warriors, will be have a plethora of pivotal decisions to make with the franchise's future of contention in mind. And with the 2023 NBA Draft looming, it will be interesting to see what the Warriors do with the 19th pick and whether they continue to straddle the fine line between going all-in to help Stephen Curry win his fifth championship and developing young prospects to help prepare them for a Curry-less future.
What the Warriors do with Jordan Poole will certainly be an interesting point of discussion as well. With the Warriors' well-known desire to keep Draymond Green in town, keeping Poole around may not be the most conducive to team success given the events of last season. Thus, trading away Poole could very well be in the cards, even with GM Dunleavy's proclamations that he hopes the 24-year old would be around in San Francisco for at least the next four years.
Nevertheless, crazier things have happened before in the NBA. It's not like members of a team's front office have not reneged on their word before all in the service of the greater good of the franchise they serve.
But will the Warriors decide to ramp up their contending timeline and go all-in, much like the Phoenix Suns did with the Bradley Beal trade, and trade away Jordan Poole and the 19th pick of the 2023 NBA Draft? Or will they play it safe and add yet another youngster to the roster?
Here is a last minute prediction for what the Warriors will do come draft night.
Warriors stand pat, draft Kris Murray with the 19th overall pick of the 2023 NBA Draft
Is standing pat really the best idea for the Warriors? With the punitive measures of the new CBA taking effect sooner than later, it might be in the Warriors' best interest to amass as much talent as they could. Stephen Curry, as elite of a player he remains at the moment, is no spring chicken, so maximizing their contending window with the greatest player in franchise history appears to be the smart move.
Trading away Jordan Poole and the 19th overall pick of the 2023 NBA Draft may not net the Warriors a bonafide All-Star in return, given the poor ending to Poole's season, but at the very least, it could help the Warriors acquire a player who better fits alongside the Curry-Klay Thompson-Andrew Wiggins-Draymond Green core (provided Green re-signs). Perhaps the Warriors can finally convince the Toronto Raptors to give up OG Anunoby.
On the other hand, acquiring NBA-ready contributors under rookie scale deals will also be crucial under the new CBA. Signing quality free agents will be difficult for teams above the second tax apron. (The Warriors would not have been able to sign Donte DiVincenzo if the new CBA rules were in effect last season.) Thus, the Warriors, depending on who's on the board, may very well decide to keep the pick and hope that the prospect they select ends up being a high-level contributor in year one.
If Kris Murray is on the board at 19, that may be an opportunity that's too good to pass up on for the Dubs. And as ClutchPoints' Brett Siegel pointed out in his latest mock draft, that could very well be the direction the Warriors go with if they keep the 19th pick.
Kris is more than just Keegan Murray's twin. Murray has good size at either forward position (6'8), and at 22, he won't need much time to marinate, unlike the Warriors' first-round pick last year, Patrick Baldwin Jr.
At Iowa last season, Kris Murray broke out in a big way, averaging 20.2 points per game (10.5 more than his sophomore season averages) on similar efficiency as his 2021-22 output. Murray was a threat to score from all three-levels, but should he land with the Warriors, he won't have to worry too much about the burden of creating his own shot.
Like Keegan, Kris fits in like a glove in any contending setting, able to knock down open threes and attack closeouts all the while remaining solid on the defensive end.
The Warriors could also end up taking a guard in this range, as there's a strong chance Donte DiVincenzo declines his player option in search of a bigger payday. Perhaps Jordan Hawkins, Nick Smith Jr., or even Jalen Hood-Schifino fall to 19.
But the easiest path to playoff viability is always possessing skilled size. At 6'8, as long as Kris Murray shows that he's serviceable on the defensive end, he certainly has a path to helping the Warriors nab a playoff contributor for cheap. And as the 2023 Denver Nuggets showed with Christian Braun, drafting a player who's ready to crack the rotation from day one goes a long way towards competing — and perhaps Murray could be this year's version of such a player.
