Dub Hub: Warriors given the worst odds in the NBA Draft Lottery

Rounding up all Warriors and NBA related news for Tuesday, April 23rd.

In today’s Dub Hub:

• Warriors lose tiebreaker to the Kings, giving them the 14th spot in the NBA Draft Lottery
• Former Warrior Donte DiVincenzo hits the clutch go-ahead three to give the Knicks a 2-0 series lead over the 76ers
• Lakers frustrated after Jamal Murray’s buzzer beater lifts Nuggets over Lakers, 101-99

The NBA conducted six tiebreakers on Monday to determine the official odds for this year’s NBA Draft Lottery. Although the Golden State Warriors and the Sacramento Kings finished their seasons with an identical record of 46-36, the Warriors lost the tiebreaker to the Kings, giving them the worst odds in the lottery at No. 14.

This makes it highly unlikely that Golden State will keep their first round pick this season as it conveys to the Portland Trail Blazers if it lands outside of the top four of the draft.

For more on this and other news around the NBA, here is our latest news round-up for Tuesday, April 23rd:

Warriors News:

NBA breaks six ties among 15 teams for June draft | ESPN

The Sacramento Kings won a tiebreaker over the Golden State Warriors and will have the No. 13 pick if it does not move up in the draft lottery. The Warriors receive the No. 14 pick — the last selection in the lottery — and their pick will be conveyed to the Portland Trail Blazers unless the Warriors move into the top four, of which they have just a 3.4% chance.

Warriors will have the 53rd pick in the upcoming NBA Draft

Why the Warriors, Bulls, Hawks and Kings face tough choices after Play-In Tournament exits | The Athletic

Waiving Chris Paul’s $30 million for next year is an obvious first step, one that gives them enough room to re-sign Thompson at a fair number, add a backup point guard with the nontaxpayer midlevel exception and still stay below the first apron. Additional wiggle room is possible via trading Kevon Looney ($8 million), who looked cooked by the end of the season, or if Gary Payton II opts out of his $9.1 million deal and takes a longer contract for less annual money.

Trading Andrew Wiggins also is a more hopeful possibility, although the three years and $85 million left on his deal are likely negative equity at this point. Additionally, his contract could remain an impediment a year from now when a potential extension for Jonathan Kuminga kicks in, pushing the Warriors back into the tax even if they do get under this year. The Warriors’ best bet is probably hoping Wiggins has a better year and is more tradeable at the February 2025 deadline or in the summer of 2025.

Former Warrior Donte DiVincenzo hits late go-ahead three against the 76ers as Knicks take a 2-0 series lead

Warriors’ Klay Thompson clearly took the Athletic’s anonymous NBA player poll | SF Gate

The Athletic dropped its semiregular poll Monday morning, saying its NBA reporters interviewed 142 players over the final month of the season to fill out the third edition of its poll. The Athletic granted anonymity in the hopes of getting more honest answers to a wide variety of questions, such as this year’s MVP, best defender, most overrated and underrated players, and more.

But in what the Athletic called a “bonus question,” the outlet got 115 players to share their favorite current non-NBA athlete. The names at the top of the list were Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, WNBA No. 1 overall pick Caitlin Clark and tennis great Novak Djokovic.

Buried among the names that received a single vote was outfielder Trayce Thompson, currently plying his trade for the Mets’ Triple-A affiliate in Syracuse.

NBA News:

Anonymous NBA player poll 2024: LeBron or Jordan as the GOAT? Most overrated? Finals favorite? | The Athletic

Do you think MJ’s getting nervous? King James almost took his (player poll) GOAT crown this time around, and he’ll do just that next year if this voting trend continues.

In this endless debate, His Airness has experienced serious slippage for the third consecutive poll. Jordan had a huge edge in 2019 (73 percent to LeBron’s 11.9 percent) and was still nearly doubling him in 2023 (58.3 percent to 33 percent). Now the gap is only 3.8 percent.

It makes some sense, though, as James is doing things at this late stage of his career that players this age have never done. And these many feats, it’s quite clear, are changing the way some players see this debate.

Wolves ownership dispute set for mediation on May 1, sources say | ESPN

As part of a failed process to assume majority ownership, Lore and Rodriguez submitted financial projections forecasting a sizable retreat in roster payroll that Taylor believed would jeopardize the franchise’s ability to compete for a championship, sources recently told ESPN.

In documents shared with Taylor, the NBA and The Carlyle Group, a private equity firm, Lore and Rodriguez rendered a budget projection as potential majority owners that would’ve lowered the Timberwolves’ payroll to $171 million beginning next season — below the projected $172 million luxury tax threshold, sources told ESPN. The Timberwolves would’ve gone from having approximately a $25 million-plus tax payment to receiving a tax distribution of approximately $6.5 million.

Lakers’ Anthony Davis frustrated after Jamal Murray’s buzzer beater completes comeback win for the Nuggets

In case you missed it at Golden State of Mind:

Hawks hire away a Warriors executive, again

What does this mean for the Warriors? They need to hire a new lawyer who knows the CBA, for one. It doesn’t necessarily indicate Saleh’s unhappiness, or Mike Dunleavy Jr. cleaning house, as the new job is a clear promotion for Saleh. Dunleavy said there’s no mandate from ownership that the team gets under the luxury tax, but we can probably assume that after losing in the play-in tournament, the Warriors are going to get under the luxury tax. They won’t have Saleh to help guide them, but it doesn’t take a CBA expert to text Joe Lacob, “Release Chris Paul.”

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