Golden State Strikes Giannis Sweepstakes – What’s Next?

The Golden State Warriors struck in their bid for Giannis Antetokounmpo as the The Milwaukee Bucks decided to wait until the summer to deal with the superstar in the hopes that they can engineer a better return or even convince the waived Antetokounmpo to stay.

In the end, the package of Draymond Green, Jonathan Cumings, Brandin Podziemski, four unprotected No. 1 spots and a first-round pick trade that Golden State put on the table wasn’t enough to separate Antetokounmpo from the Bucks, forcing the Warriors to turn to Kristaps Porzingis and Buddy Hilding.

What’s next for Golden State after failing to land one player who could give the rest of this season some purpose and meaning? What’s next for Stephen Curry and the dynasty he built in what looks like their twilight days?

The Warriors find themselves at the back of the Western Conference playoff picture, barely hanging on to the eighth seed as they continue to slide after Jimmy Butler’s season-ending ACL injury.

Currently, Curry remains out of the lineup as he tries to heal from patellofemoral pain syndrome (runner’s knee) that is plaguing his knee, while Jonathan Cumminga is slowly working his way back from a bruised knee of his own. That leaves Steve Kerr to field a star-less, uncompetitive rotation with talented hyper-specialists who could be contributors in the right system, but ultimately aren’t enough to compete in the West without adequate star power.

With that set of circumstances in mind, it seems tepid and underwhelming viewing for a Dubs fan base accustomed to titles, deep playoff runs and wins. The bleakness of Golden State’s current situation is obvious. Spelling it out is sobering.

Big questions on Golden State’s horizon

Golden State is falling into basketball purgatory – otherwise known as the soulless abyss where teams that can’t compete reside. And in the deep, dark pit that is basketball purgatory, tough questions must be asked about the franchise’s future.

With Curry dealing with ailments that can only be described as “old man injuries,” will the Warriors consider shutting him down for the season?

If a trade is no longer on the table, perhaps the best move in the short term is to preserve the health of their franchise cornerstone, no matter how hard that will be to sell to the fans, the team and Curry himself. Will Curry really put himself aside, even if it’s in the best interest of his health?

Regardless, those are questions the Warriors must ask themselves. They also have to wonder about Kerr, their legendary head coach, who is not under contract next season. Kerr and Curry claimed they wanted to ride off into the sunset together as player and coach. But given where the franchise appears to be headed, is Kerr interested in commanding a transitional rebuilding effort? Are the Warriors interested in Kerr at the helm of utter destruction?

Publicly, Kerr remains adamant that those are questions for the offseason. But this season has produced moments of visible frustration. And The Ringer reported that his coaching staff is operating under the assumption that Kerr will not return. Not to mention owner Joe Lacob’s weird emails to random fans citing disagreements with Kerr’s coaching decisions. Are the crumbs laid for seismic departure?

Coming down swinging

Without Antetokounmpo, what’s left for the Warriors is, at best, a fluky first-round exit. Even though they kicked out at the deadline, nearly every other Western Conference team below them in the standings decided to punt. The Clippers dealt James Harden and Ivica Zubac for the injured Garland and future picks. The Mavs and Grizzlies landed their star big men. Portland is still pushing, but the Jazz and the rest of the pack are too far behind.

“Even without Jimmy (Butler) we can make the playoffs,” Kerr said. “The ceiling is absolutely lower. I’m not going to sit here and lie and say we can be as good as we were with Jimmy, no way.”

But if their witty comes from behind A 101-97 win over the Phoenix Sunsjust hours after one of the toughest trade deadlines in recent memory, both emotionally and more broadly, is an indication of how they attack the final 30 games of the season, they will swing.

Because in some ways, Porzingis’ intriguing side does offer some hope. And the jumps of fan favorites like Guy Santos, Pat Spencer and Moses Moody were significant. The three had their fingerprints on them during a 16-2 run to shock the Suns. And of course, The Stephen Curry Show will always be a must. Although he is currently sidelined with a racing knee, the euphoria and joy Curry radiated after the Warriors showed that he is as involved in winning with this team as ever.

Honor is in fighting bravely while the ship is sinking. As bleak as it looked right after the trade deadline, the Warriors showed they don’t have to go meekly into their upcoming purgatory.