Letters + Curry! Super King! Will the Warriors bets with all their strength?

Curry's injury retreat made the Warriors unable to evaluate the lineup. Whether to break up the team and trade Antetokounmpo has become a headache. For all doubts, you can read this article:

Stephen Curry has very little chance of competing for the fifth championship, and the Golden State Warriors know this very well. This sense of urgency runs through every decision they made in the 2024-25 season. When Shams reported to the Warriors before the trade deadline, "seriously inquired about every All-Star player," it was because the management understood how precious the 37-year-old Curry's peak end was - the Warriors may not meet such a player again in decades, so they must take a gamble to grasp the present. This also explains why they would trade to get Jimmy Butler.

Butler's field value was immediately effective: he joined the former Warriors with 25 wins and 26 losses, while he participated in 23 games and won 18 wins and 5 losses. But what is more important is the "cost-performance ratio" of this deal: the Warriors only gave out one first-round pick in 2025 (protected by Stephen's rules has not affected future assets), and the core lineup only lost Andrew Wiggins. The management hopes Butler can directly help the team win the championship, but the subtext is: If you find that he is not strong enough, you still have chips to perform secondary operations.

Curry's injury-destroying opportunity

It is precisely this context that the hamstring strain encountered by Curry in the second round against the Timberwolves series (finally eliminated 1-4). This not only shattered the hope of the fifth championship, but also deprived the Warriors of the opportunity to evaluate their true competitiveness. This round of series should have become a touchstone - if the Rockets lose to the first round of the tiebreak, the management will clearly strengthen the needs. But what about now? Curry was injured and retreated after only 13 minutes of playing. The Warriors crushed his opponent during his appearance, but what can this tiny sample show?

Butler failed to support Curry without a match. Does his injury in the first round against the Rockets affect his condition? Is the playoff offensive creativity of role players such as Brandin Podjemsky trustworthy? Is Jonathan Cumingga's outbreak due to strength, or is it the accidental product of "Curry's injury and leaving the field"? All of these questions remain unresolved.

The only sure thing is that the Warriors in the 2024-25 season are slightly stronger than the Rockets at the playoff level, but this is meaningless to the future - the Rockets and the Thunder are the youngest teams in the league, and the Warriors' core age structure is destined to decline. Kuminga's development has not met expectations and is facing the problem of renewing the contract. Pojemsky has not yet fulfilled his All-Star Position. Curry, 37-year-old Butler, 36-year-old Draymond Green, 35-year-old will only continue to age. Reinforcing can only rely on external signings.

Antetokounmpo's chances and risks

If there is a second "Butler-like" cheap All-Star deal? The Warriors will definitely take action. But such opportunities are hard to come by, and a more realistic solution is to dismantle the core lineup. Currently, except for Curry, Butler and Green, the Warriors have a book salary of only $31 million, making it difficult to match the contract of top stars. And this year's biggest goal is undoubtedly Giannis Antetokounmpo.

As early as 2020, the San Francisco Chronicle revealed that the Warriors "many years of preparation for Antetokounmpo." Now the Bucks are in trouble. Although Antetokounmpo has not applied for a deal, according to Shams, he has "open to exploring long-term stay or leaving the team." "The Ringer" reporter Howard Beck said his next home may target big city teams (Los Angeles/New York/Miami), and the Warriors' Bay Area market is also attractive.

Warriors' chips and obstacles

From paper, the Warriors find it difficult to defeat Thunder/Rockets/Nets and other teams in the bidding war (the Spurs have added variables after they draw the second pick). But referring to the 2019 Anthony Davis designated the Lakers case, the willingness of the stars often plays a decisive role. Curry and Antetokounmpo have a close relationship: the two have chosen each other in the All-Star Games many times. When Curry won the championship in 2022, Antetokounmpo called him "the best in the world", and Curry responded "I also commented on him last year." This kind of mutual appreciation may become the key. The Warriors need to convince Antetokounmpo to be traded to Jinzhou.

In the trading framework, the Warriors' principle is "Everything except Curry can be abandoned": Podjemsky, Kumingga (need to sign first and then exchange), and the first round pick after 2030 (only the Wizards' top 20 picks) can be packaged. But the problem with salary matching is that Antetokounmpo will be paid $54 million next season, and the Warriors must include Butler (or Green). If the Bucks rebuild, they will inevitably tend toward young assets, and they are very interested in 34-year-old Butler and 35-year-old Green.

Solution may follow the model of trading Lillard by the Bucks: Send Butler/Green to a third-party team in exchange for more draft picks to the Bucks. But such operations are extremely risky - if the transaction news leaks, the locker room may collapse.

The contemporary dilemma of super teams

Even if Antetokounmpo gets, the strict restrictions on the deep lineup of the new labor-management agreement will make the Warriors difficult. The failure of the Lakers/Clippers/Warriors this season proves that the pure star lineup is no longer the answer to the version. If the Warriors form the three giants Curry Butler Antetokounmpo, they will be the second richest line and can only fill the rotation with their basic salary (such as renewing Gary Payton II/Buddy Hilde). However, the stability of this type of player's playoffs is doubtful, and opponents can target non-shot points.

The Warriors are facing a philosophical rift: Cole believes in the deep rotation of "many people and strong power", while his boss Joe Lacob has always advocated superstar gambling (such as signing Durant in 2016/changing Butler in 2025). Now they have to make a decision in the unknown - Curry/Butler/Green have two years left in contracts, but the current lineup's cap remains a mystery. Curry's injury has turned the assessment into a silence, and management can only bet on the future and pray for fate to take good care of.

If Antetokounmpo enters the market this summer, the Warriors will face a cruel choice:

is to package Butler/Green+ draft pick chase "Curry+Antetokounmpo " super giant combination? Or risk breaking the formed champion chemistry? Facing historical talent - is it to stick to the existing system or to bet on the opportunity to change the alliance pattern?