With little resources, the Golden State Warriors went into free agency in 2023. Due to their league-high payroll, the team was only able to offer minimum salaries to potential players, which severely hindered their ability to draw in high-profile free agents.
Upon the arrival of free agency, the Warriors had already executed their major offseason acquisition. Their biggest splash came when they traded Chris Paul for Jordan Poole, using free agency as a means of securing their roster’s termination.
Which free agents did the Golden State Warriors wish they could have signed during the previous offseason?
Consequently, Golden State’s free agency acquisitions have not been that impressive thus far. Dario Saric was their largest acquisition, and at the time it seemed like a very wise addition on a minimal contract.
The Croatian was among the team’s top performers over the first 30 to 40 games of the season, supporting that idea. But as the season has gone on, Saric’s shortcomings on defense have become increasingly apparent.
His playing time as a small-ball five became unsustainable, and head coach Steve Kerr was forced to use him only at the four, next to Draymond Green or Trayce Jackson-Davis. However, neither that nor Paul’s return, who he had collaborated so effectively with earlier in the season, was particularly helpful.
Saric is currently not in the rotation and has no chance of returning to a regular role. To be fair, Saric’s skill may not have as great of an impact as Golden State’s vast roster.
Another point-guard signed by the Warriors was Cory Joseph, a seasoned player who was supposed to fill in for Paul or Stephen Curry in case of injury. Sadly, the player-team dynamic didn’t work out, and Joseph was traded to the Indiana Pacers at the deadline in order to save money on taxes.
In light of Saric’s current lack of influence and Joseph’s removal from the club, which players—if they were still available—would the Warriors have been better off signing? Let’s examine three players the team would be sorry to pass on, beginning with a fierce rival guard:
1. Eric Gordon
We know for a fact that the Warriors were interested in signing Eric Gordon, with the veteran guard revealing he turned down interest from Golden State, Milwaukee and Houston to sign a two-year, $6.6 million deal (second-year player option) with the Phoenix Suns.
Gordon has been one of the best three-point shooters in the league over the last decade. That’s proven no different in Phoenix where the 35-year-old has averaged 6.2 attempts per game — his most since the 2020-21 season.
Gordon is making 38% of his threes and is averaging 12 points, 2.0 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. The Suns’ injury issues meant they’ve probably leant on the former Sixth Man of the Year more than expected, with Gordon averaging 29.5 minutes including 24 starts in his 53 games.
While the presence of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson is always going to mean the Warriors rank highly in three-point attempts, this roster actually lacks some shooting outside the storied duo. Golden State had five players average more than two made threes last season, and four average two or more in 2021-22. Only Curry and Thompson are doing that this season, with Chris Paul third in average made threes at 1.4 per game.
That’s an element Gordon certainly could have helped with, having averaged 2.4 made threes this season. There’s also the element of adding another experienced playoff performer into the mix, something the Warriors certainly could have done with in Saturday’s shock loss to the San Antonio Spurs.
2. Beasley Malik
Surprisingly, Malik Beasley was able to sign a one-year, $2.7 million contract with the Milwaukee Bucks after playing an average of more than 25 minutes per game for the Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Lakers the previous season.
Even more unexpectedly, Beasley now plays a bigger role for the championship-contending Bucks than he did for different teams in previous years. The 27-year-old, who averages 29.6 minutes per game for the second-best team in the Eastern Conference, has started all 62 of Milwaukee’s games this season.
Throughout his career, Beasley has been a skilled shooter, but this season, while playing next to Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo, he’s elevated his game. In addition to ranking 11th in the league in total made threes this season, his 43.6% shooting from beyond the arc places him sixth in the league.
Beasley averages 11.3 points per game in addition to 3.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists. In addition, he has been assigned to guard Milwaukee’s point of attack, which is a big job for a guy on a minimum deal, even though it has been done with differing degrees of success.
Beasley might not have started for the Warriors, but as a 3-and-D option off the bench, he could have played a significant impact. Similar to how Gordon was described, Beasley’s shooting would have helped Golden State to balance out Curry and Thompson.
On July 2, of last year, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype reported that the Warriors were among the six teams who expressed interest in Beasley when free agency opened. What might have been.
3. Kelly Oubre Jr.
Although Gordon and Beasley had a genuine chance of joining the Warriors in the offseason, it is quite doubtful that Kelly Oubre Jr. would ever return to the team following his very disappointing 2021–2022 campaign.
That doesn’t alter the fact that Oubre has established himself as one of the league’s most valuable summer additions. The 28-year-old spent a significant amount of time without a team before deciding to sign with the 76ers in late September.
Although Oubre’s offensive production may have decreased after two seasons with the Charlotte Hornets, who finished in last place, he is still a gifted scorer who can be used as a bench scorer or as a third option in a starting lineup.
In 29.2 minutes per game, the former Warrior has averaged 14.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 1.2 steals. Despite having a lower three-point percentage (30.2%), Oubre’s overall efficiency has increased as a result of relying less on his outside shooting. This season, he has only attempted 4.5 shots per game, down from over seven in each of the previous two seasons with Charlotte and over five with Golden State the year before.
There would have been times during the season where the Warriors might have made use of Oubre’s scoring prowess given Andrew Wiggins’ patchiness. Would Jonathan Kuminga’s development have been affected by that? Perhaps. However, Oubre might still be more useful than Saric right now.
