Several teams can take positive vibes from the 2021-22 NBA season, but none more than the Golden State Warriors. After a fallow period that included a disastrous, lottery-bound season and a play-in exit in 2021, Golden State put it all together and claimed the 2022 title behind Stephen Curry’s brilliance and tremendous defense. The Warriors also have the benefit of stocked shelves after adding Moses Moody, Jonathan Kuminga, and James Wiseman across two drafts, and the return of Klay Thompson gives Golden State another shooting option that held up defensively in the NBA Finals.
Of course, the grind never stops in the NBA, and the Warriors have myriad free agent decisions for veteran role players as the 2022 offseason arrives. Thankfully for Golden State, the core pieces are intact, but the Warriors also held onto their 2022 first round pick (No. 28) to begin the offseason cycle.
Roster Needs: Overall depth, clarity in the frontcourt
Patrick Baldwin Jr. (No. 28 Overall), C-: Good luck trying to figure out what to do with Baldwin. Golden State has the luxury of not “needing” anything from this pick next year, and Baldwin is definitely a future-facing selection. He’s a former top-five player in the class, but it was a disaster at Milwaukee and he needs to make shots and take it slow.
2022 Free Agents:
Andre Iguodala (UFA)
Kevon Looney (UFA)
Otto Porter Jr (UFA)
Nemanja Bjelica (UFA)
Gary Payton II (UFA)
Damion Lee (UFA)
Juan Toscano-Anderson (RFA)
Quinndary Weatherspoon (RFA)
Chris Chiozza (UFA)
Roster:
Stephen Curry
Klay Thompson
Andrew Wiggins
Draymond Green
James Wiseman
Jonathan Kuminga
Jordan Poole
Moses Moody
Patrick Baldwin Jr.