Music City posted:If he does, how do they afford Thompson? They may have trade Igoudala. They’ll decline the team option on Livingston, since he’s retiring probably. The rest of their bench is in shambles.
Paying Durant, Green, Igoudala... $65M. They have 8 players on the payroll if you count Durant, at $113M. $19M left to the tax. They’re f’d..And they move into a new arena which is going to have insanely expensive prices. Are people really going to want to pay to watch Steph Curry get doubled teamed on every possession to leave Jordan Bell, Quinn Cook, or Kevon Looney open for shots?
Durant is obviously gone for next year no matter what. If the Warriors were to act in good faith, they'd pay him the max salary that he'd have gotten if he'd have moved on (About 4 years and 165 million). That will be a real test since he clearly laid it on the line for them. If they don't make that offer, who is ever going to play hurt for them again without a long-term contract?
Igoudala and Livingston are about to retire - this has been rumored for months. If Klay goes, it will turn into a total rebuild around a 31 year old transcendent point guard and a 29 year old guy who is clearly losing a step athletically who has shot 22% from 3 this post-season (Green). Because of salary cap rules (no Bird rights), they can only offer Cousins a fraction of what he'd get elsewhere. It's the same situation the Bucks have with Lopez.
Botton line, if Durant opts in or resigns, they have limited options in terms of who they can sign. They'd have to sign guys for a mid-level exemption. They would have to think about seeing if they could get anything for Green in a trade. That's literally the only tradeable asset they will have if Klay and Durant leave (Curry is untouchable obviously). But Green doesn't make enough to make a trade work for a star level that would help and might be available (in other words, a good to great player with a massive contract that's stuck on a team that's in purgatory as a 7-8 seed). I'm thinking of a guy like Blake Griffin.
It's amazing we are talking about how screwed the Warriors are when they are still 2 wins away from a 4th title in 5 years.