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If the Golden State Warriors miss out on LeBron James (which is a legitimate possibility), is there a high-profile asset the organization could turn their attention to?
Fortunately for the Dubs, there’s a New Orleans Pelicans star forward who’s still available on the trade market, and Golden State is among the teams that have been linked to him.
“Teams that are in the mix for Murphy to varying degrees now are the (Boston) Celtics, (Detroit) Pistons, Warriors, (Los Angeles) Clippers, and Hawks,” HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto reported last Thursday.
“Golden State’s interest in Murphy is to be determined with a LeBron James free agent pursuit in the air. “The Pistons have consistently circled the wagons on Murphy in trade talks, but felt the price was too high.
“With the asking price dropping from the equivalent of four to three first-round picks in any Murphy trade talks recently, will Detroit have more of an appetite to make a trade following the loss of Tobias Harris in free agency?”
Three first-round picks is still a steep price for Murphy, who’s yet to earn an All-Star or All-NBA nod and doesn’t have valuable experience performing in a large market with high expectations yearly.
Still, with the Warriors seemingly being outsiders in the James sweepstakes and Jimmy Butler expected to miss the start of the 2026-27 season to recover from his ACL injury, Golden State needs to surround Curry with an uber-talented contributor who could aid him in Year 18.
Murphy, who flaunted his high-upside two-way skill set to begin his NBA career, could be that guy, as he averaged 21.5 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 1.5 steals with the Pelicans last season. As of right now, though, the Warriors’ main focus appears to be doing whatever it takes to defy the odds and land James.
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