The Golden State Warriors entered the season with hope, but 22 games in, the reality is murkier. Key injuries, offensive regression, and inconsistent rotations have rewritten expectations. Their 11–11 mark doesn’t just reflect bad luck — it shows a team struggling to reconnect to what once made them elite.
Amid that uncertainty, Jedd Pagaduan of ClutchPoints proposed a radical trade scenario involving Anthony Davis. In his story, Golden State trades a heavy package — including Draymond Green, Jonathan Kuminga, Buddy Hield, Gui Santos, and multiple future picks — for Davis. The idea is bold. It trades youth and flexibility for immediate star power.
What Davis Would Bring to the Warriors
GettyAfter firing GM Nico Harrison, the Mavericks have a lot of decisions to make, including on Anthony Davis.
Davis remains one of the rare big men who can legitimately alter both ends of the floor when healthy. Rim protection, paint scoring, pick-and-roll coverages — he checks every box. For a Warriors offense that ranks among the highest in three-point attempts but dead last in paint points, someone like Davis could give shooters cleaner looks and take pressure off jump shots.
He’s far more than a traditional rim-runner. He can square up, rise over you from the mid-range, or bully the wrong matchup into submission. Place that skill set beside Stephen Curry and defenders start feeling pulled in opposite directions. The floor opens. The reads get cleaner. The half-court offense breathes again instead of living possession to possession.
Why the Trade Package Doesn’t Fit Reality
The complication with any Davis idea starts in Dallas, not Golden State. This is the franchise that traded Luka Doncic to get him — the single most shocking and scrutinized trade in modern NBA history. That move was tied heavily to former GM Nico Harrison, the loudest internal voice pushing for Davis and the architect of the gamble.
With Harrison now gone, there have been murmurs around the league that Dallas could eventually reassess its direction. A new front office might not view Davis with the same attachment. They didn’t make the trade. They didn’t stake their reputations on it. This group isn’t tied to the original vision. But even with that door cracked open, it’s hard to gauge what Davis’ market actually is.
His value swings with his availability. Some nights he looks like a franchise-altering force. Other nights he’s sidelined, navigating another strain, sprain, or flare-up. Teams around the league get that. And if Dallas ever listened, there would be no shortage of offers from franchises holding more assets, more youth, or more future flexibility than Golden State.
What the Warriors Would Be Giving Up
Which brings the Warriors back to their own dilemma: what exactly would they be giving up?
Moving Green is not just a roster change — it’s a seismic shift in identity. His scoring has dipped, but his defensive impact remains elite. He’s still one of the smartest defenders alive, still unlocks switching schemes few teams can mimic, still amplifies Curry’s greatness as his pick-and-roll partner. Four championships aren’t built on vibes, but their chemistry is close.
Swapping that for Davis creates a different kind of team: higher ceiling, higher risk. A Curry–Davis–Jimmy Butler trio would be terrifying when healthy. The playoff matchups would tilt dramatically. But this isn’t the 2020 version of Davis. The miles have added up. The injuries linger longer. The margin for error shrinks every season.
So the question becomes less about what Davis can be, and more about what Golden State is willing to sacrifice to find out.
What Warriors Should Really Be Looking For
GettyTrey Murphy III of the New Orleans Pelicans reacts to making a basket in the fourth quarter against the Golden State Warriors.
The truth is, the Warriors don’t need a full reset. They need a smart tweak. Send Kuminga to a team that wants upside. Target a young wing or forward who offers spacing, defense, and athleticism. Acquire a reliable rotation big man without sacrificing core identity.
Someone like Trey Murphy makes more sense than forcing a superstar fit. He keeps the timeline flexible, preserves cap health, and allows core chemistry to improve. That kind of targeted upgrade would plug holes — not blow up the house.
Golden State doesn’t need fireworks. They need balance.
Golden State’s Future Requires Clarity, Not Chaos
The Davis scenario is ultimately a window into the kinds of questions the Warriors must answer, not a prediction of where they are heading. When a team sits in the middle of the standings, the league naturally starts imagining dramatic pathways forward. Some ideas push boundaries. Some stretch logic. Others simply highlight what’s at stake.
Golden State’s task is to separate noise from necessity.
If they choose to reshape the roster, it has to be done with purpose. That means weighing the upside of a player like Davis against the cost of losing the defensive heartbeat in Green. It means balancing the urgency of Curry’s timeline with the realities of age, health and long-term sustainability. It means choosing a direction that strengthens the foundation rather than shakes it loose.
There are paths that elevate this group without sacrificing identity. There are moves that make the team more dynamic without betting everything on volatility. Those are the decisions that matter most.
The Warriors don’t need panic. They need clarity — a clear view of who they are, what they still can be, and which changes genuinely bring them closer to that version.
In a season full of noise, the smartest franchises tune out the dramatic ideas and lean into the ones that build something lasting.
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