NBA Rumors: Should Warriors Consider Trading Draymond Green For Rudy Gobert?
Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert is expected to be one of the most coveted superstars on the trade market in the 2020 NBA offseason. The Jazz are currently doing their best to fix the issue between him and Donovan Mitchell, but if the team fails, it would be left with no choice but to break up the star duo this summer. Once he becomes officially available on the trading block, several NBA teams in dire need of a frontcourt boost and additional star power are expected to express a strong interest in acquiring Gobert from the Jazz, including the Golden State Warriors.
According to Ric Bucher of Bleacher Report, the Warriors and the Jazz may consider engaging in a blockbuster deal that would send Gobert to the Golden State in exchange for All-Star power forward Draymond Green.
“While league sources stopped short of referring to the relationship as ‘irreconcilable,’ they did confirm that Mitchell remains unhappy with Gobert. That poses a potential problem for the Jazz because Mitchell will enter the fourth year of his rookie contract next season and is eligible to sign a long-term extension. If he doesn’t, he becomes a restricted free agent in 2021 and an unrestricted free agent a year later. A Gobert-for-Green deal meets salary-cap trade requirements, and the Jazz would get a former Defensive Player of the Year for the reigning one. The Warriors, meanwhile, would get a younger (and physically more imposing) one.”
If the dispute between the Jazz’s two superstars doesn’t seem like it will be resolved anytime soon, trading Gobert for Green would make a lot of sense for the Jazz. Statistically, Green isn’t better than Gobert, but he would still be an incredible addition to the Jazz. Green would give the team an All-Star caliber big man with plenty of championship experience who can help Mitchell keep the team competitive in the Western Conference. Though Green’s normal position is at power forward, Jazz Head Coach Quin Snyder could use the player as his center when he wants to use the small-ball strategy.
Meanwhile, the potential deal would allow the Warriors to replace Green with a younger All-Star caliber big man in Gobert. Gobert, Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Andrew Wiggins would form the new core that could help the Warriors fully dominate the Western Conference and reclaim the NBA championship title in the 2020-21 NBA season.
However, though Gobert is indeed better, some people believe that the Warriors should think twice before trading Green to the Jazz. An Eastern Conference VP who spoke to Bucher thinks that Green’s “intangibles” as a leader and locker room presence are too valuable for the Warriors to lose, especially now that they need someone to guide Wiggins. Also, if the Warriors trade Green for a non-floor-spacing big man like Gobert, Warriors Head Coach Steve Kerr may have to give up on executing the small-ball offense, the strategy that enabled his team to make five consecutive appearances in the NBA Finals and win three championship titles.
