The Golden State Warriors emerged victorious with arguably the best of their four recent championships in 2022, but the roster and therefore the outcome could have looked a whole lot different had they pulled off a blockbuster mid-season trade.
According to NBA insider Jake Fischer of The Stein Line in a report on Wednesday, the Warriors looked at a potential trade for Domantas Sabonis ahead of the 2022 deadline before he was ultimately sent from the Indiana Pacers to the Sacramento Kings for Tyrese Haliburton.
Warriors nearly traded for Domantas Sabonis before the 2022 deadline
Had Golden State traded for Sabonis instead, there would have been huge ramifications across the league beyond just the result of the 2022 championship. According to Fischer there was a potential deal in place that would have sent Sabonis and ironically Buddy Hield from the Pacers to the Warriors in exchange for Andrew Wiggins and Jonathan Kuminga.
Sources say Golden State did discuss the pursuit of Sabonis before the 2022 trade deadline,” Fischer wrote. “The Pacers were known at the time to be big fans of Jonathan Kuminga, leading to various discussions between the two front offices that featured current Warriors swingman Buddy Hield, former Warriors swingman Andrew Wiggins and Sabonis in various frameworks.”
There’s plenty to dissect from this, starting with how different Golden State would have looked entering that season’s playoffs. Wiggins was an All-Star that season, then was arguably the team’s second-best player during the triumphant playoff run.
Combine that with the impact that Kevon Looney likely wouldn’t have had if Sabonis was on the team, and then general manager Bob Myers was proven right, at least initially, for choosing not to pull off the deal.
The fact the Warriors won the championship dismisses the opposing arguments for the trade, but they’re still interesting to consider regardless. Golden State wouldn’t have necessarily faced the same question marks over their center rotation in recent seasons, with Sabonis an All-Star again in 2023 and continuing to be an ultra-productive offensive player and rebounder.
Trading Kuminga in his rookie season would have also avoided all the back-and-forth we’ve seen over the years in regard to his role and fit on the team. That would have circumvented plenty of frustration among fans, not to mention trading him when he had more value as a recent seventh overall pick.
Where would Haliburton be now if the Warriors had traded for Sabonis? What about all the other subsequent moves that Golden State, Sacramento and Indiana have made? It’s all a moot point now, yet it’s interesting to consider nonetheless.
The Warriors have now been linked to Sabonis again as a potential trade target this season, but his now much larger contract makes that unlikely despite his expected availability.
