What Lowe believes Warriors need to return to NBA title contention

What Lowe believes Warriors need to return to NBA title contention originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Warriors seem to know what they need to do in order to return to the NBA’s mountaintop.

Accomplishing that task hasn’t been easy, though.

Golden State took big swings this offseason but failed to acquire All-Stars Paul George from the Los Angeles Clippers and Lauri Markkanen from the Utah Jazz.

In the mind of ESPN’s Zach Lowe, the Warriors won’t contend for an NBA title again unless they land a big-time player to pair with Steph Curry.

“It’s going to take a home run, a lightning strike,” Lowe said on “NBA Today” on Thursday. “Something like the [San Antonio] Spurs got with drafting Kawhi Leonard toward the end of Tim Duncan‘s prime because this is what happens to great legends who stay with one team. You win a lot and while you’re winning a lot, you draft at the bottom of the first round, so you’re probably not getting any stars there.

“And then the core gets old and it’s hard to transition from old to great again while the old guys are still in the league and that’s where the Warriors are.”

In a loaded Western Conference, the Warriors finished in 10th place last season and lost to the Sacramento Kings in the play-in tournament. And things won’t get any easier during the upcoming 2024-25 NBA season.

Klay Thompson is in Dallas. Curry will be 37 by the end of the season. Draymond Green turns 35 in early March.

The Warriors added veterans Buddy Hield, Kyle Anderson and De’Anthony Melton as bench depth, but none of them are close to the type of player Lowe believes they need.

“They’re a good team,” Lowe said. “This is a good, deep team in the Western Conference. They could win a round. If things go right, they could even win two rounds, but they’re not a contender. And you know what? That can be OK. It’s not a reflection of Steph. It’s not necessarily a reflection of mismanagement, though they’d surely like to have that James Wiseman pick back and they’ll look for stars, just like they look for Paul George, They look for Lauri Markkanen. They’ve got picks to trade, they’re not dead yet, but it’s going to take one home run lightning strike to get back toward the top.

“And if they don’t do it, that’s fine. There’s a good honor in being a one-team legend on good teams for the rest of Steph’s career.”

After missing out on George and Markkanen, the Warriors have to hope that guards Brandin Podziemski and Moses Moody, and forwards Jonathan Kuminga and Trayce Jackson-Davis all can take big steps in their development this season.

The Warriors’ window to acquire a “lightning strike” player is closing. General manager Mike Dunleavy and his front office will keep trying. They know it won’t be easy.

But as Lowe plainly states, if the Warriors can’t land another big-time player, it’s not the end of the world.

Curry and Golden State have accomplished a lot over the last decade, and all good things have to come to an end at some point.

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