The Warriors are projected to select Tennessee Volunteers shooting guard Chaz Lanier with the No. 44 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman explained why Lanier, a dynamic shooter and playmaker, would be an ideal fit in Golden State.
“Chaz Lanier struggled to connect against Houston’s smothering defense, but he buried 10 threes in Tennessee’s first two NCAA tournament wins,” wrote Wasserman. “NBA teams that could use more offensive firepower will look past age and lack of versatility for such advanced shotmaking.”
The writer compared Lanier’s skillset to seasoned NBA shooters such as Seth Curry and Alec Burks. Both Curry and Burks have been reliable, excellent long-range snipers for multiple NBA teams. While Curry has made 1.7 threes per game at a clip of 43.3%, Burks has made 1.2 threes per game at 38.6% through his 14-year career.
If Lanier can turn into a reliable pro like Curry or Burks, the Warriors would have done well in selecting him late in the second round.
An Instant Contributor?
A 23-year-old with five years of college experience, Lanier is said to be more NBA-ready than many teenagers selected in the first round. As such, the Warriors, a veteran team with title aspirations, could be the perfect fit for the young sharpshooter.
According to ESPN’s Jeff Borzello, Lanier was one of the standout performers in the 2025 NBA Draft Combine.
“We knew Lanier would look like one of the best shooters entering the combine, and that carried over Tuesday,” Borzello wrote on May 13.
“He has been one of the premier perimeter shotmakers in college basketball over the past two seasons, making 44% of his 3s in 2023-24 at North Florida and 39.5% last season at Tennessee.
“Lanier finished in the top five in all three 3-point shooting drills, and his touch and agility also caught the eyes of scouts. He had the fifth-fastest time in the pro lane agility drill, the third-highest no-step vertical leap and the fourth-highest max vertical leap.”
Warriors Face Lots of Questions
For Golden State, a second-round draft selection is just a small piece of the puzzle that awaits them ahead of the 2025-25 season.
Many analysts believe Golden State must get younger to compete with emerging powerhouses such as the Thunder, Timberwolves, and Rockets in the Western Conference, not to mention the fast-rising Spurs. All those teams are loaded with young talents and a chest of draft picks, unlike the Warriors, who are led by three players in their mid-to-late 30s—Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Jimmy Butler III.
Furthermore, the Warriors have a big decision to make on Restricted Free Agent Jonathan Kuminga, who is expected to attract a lot of suitors. Although the Warriors will have the right to match offer sheets, they could be forced to let the Congolese forward walk due to their dicey financial situation and insistence to remain under the NBA’s luxury tax second apron. As such, it’s more than likely that Kuminga could be on another team next season, making the Warriors roster potentially weaker.
In the meantime, however, the Warriors will try to keep their season alive in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Timberwolves.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Warriors Predicted to Select Dynamic Sharpshooter in NBA Draft appeared first on Heavy Sports.