Building on recent reports of rebuffing Anthony Davis overtures while shopping Jonathan Kuminga, the Golden State Warriors fell to 19-18 after a 103-102 loss to the Clippers—mirroring their record through 37 games in four of the last six seasons. With the Feb. 5 trade deadline nearing, GM Mike Dunleavy downplays blockbuster expectations akin to last season's Jimmy Butler deal, amid growing interest in the benchwarmer forward.
The narrow defeat to a James Harden-less Clippers squad underscores ongoing depth woes, echoing historical patterns: play-in finishes in recent postseasons, except the outlier 2021-22 champs (29-8) and last year's 17-20 start that rallied post-Butler trade to 23-8 before Curry's injury halted them in the second round.
Stephen Curry, nearing 38 by playoffs, leads with 28.7 PPG (ninth league-wide), but rotation uncertainty lingers. Kuminga, limited to 9.5 MPG recently—including healthy DNPs and benchings—has the Warriors at 9-9 with him, 10-9 without. League sources report suitors including the Sacramento Kings, Chicago Bulls, Washington Wizards, and Dallas Mavericks, though the Mavs balk at Draymond Green's $25.8M in any lingering AD talks.
Dunleavy, on 'Warriors Pregame Live,' stressed incremental moves: 'We’ll look to do stuff that makes our team better. But I wouldn’t bank on that type of move.' With three unprotected firsts available, upgrades tempt, but caution reigns given Curry's age and Coach Steve Kerr's 12-man rotations among 14 healthy players. G League standout Charles Bassey (17.6 PPG, 11 RPG for Santa Cruz) looms as a post-Jan. 5 call-up option.
