It's not exactly a well-kept secret that the Warriors would prefer to use their two lottery picks in the 2021 NBA Draft to acquire one or more veteran players capable of raising the ceiling of the team to that of a championship-level contender, rather than adding two rookies to the roster.
The problem is, thus far, there isn't an obvious fit that is known to be available.
The Warriors have their eyes set on Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal and most certainly will make an aggressive push to acquire him via trade prior to Thursday's draft if he ultimately decides he wants a change of scenery. The same generally can be said for any other NBA star that might be on the trade block, as there is an organization-wide emphasis on maximizing what remains of the championship window for the three-man core of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.
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That dynastic trio has been outspoken in its belief that the Warriors can compete for the title this coming season, provided that Golden State makes the right additions in the draft and free agency. Many, consequently, have assumed that their combined influence will have a major say on the Warriors' personnel decisions, with the expectation being that they'll opt for older, more experienced players who are more capable of contributing right away.
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That very well could be how it plays out. But while the front office shares the same desire to add another title to the trophy case next season, it has numerous factors to consider.
"As far as urgency, we want to win, and so do they," Warriors general manager Bob Myers told the media on Monday. "So does Steve [Kerr]. But do you draft a player that makes it better in one year that might not be better in the second year? And these are the things we get paid to try to get right. There are short-term decisions that are good. There are short-term decisions that you regret. And fans and ourselves will blame us, which we would deserve if we get it wrong. So that's what we are trying to figure out."
Golden State Warriors
"Can a rookie help us quicker? Later? Rookies traditionally don't help early," Myers added. "I don't care who they are. But you'd like to find guys that can play a little bit. With what we're limited to do in free agency, which is minimums, maybe taxpayer mid-level ... maybe that's a chance to grab some vets. We've done that before, but that was a team everybody wanted to come to. Will veteran players want to come now with Klay coming back? We'll see. So we have to balance all that stuff."
It's a critical offseason for the Warriors, and they must get it right. The goal remains to win a fourth NBA championship in eight seasons, and their actions on Thursday will say plenty about how they plan to go about that.