Talks between the Warriors and Jazz on a trade that would guarantee Golden State keeps its draft pick tomorrow are "all but dead," reports Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group. Assuming no deal is consummated, the Warriors will keep their pick if it lands in the top seven, or send it to Utah if it falls to eighth or lower.
The two sides had been discussing a trade that would allow Golden State to keep its pick regardless of tomorrow's lottery results. The Warriors were "working diligently" on some sort of agreement that may have included future draft considerations or cash, rather than players. However, according to Thompson's source, such a deal is "probably not going to happen" now, leaving the fate of the Warriors' pick to the ping pong balls tomorrow night.
The Warriors currently rank seventh in the lottery standings, which gives them a 3.6% chance at the first overall pick. More importantly, it gives the team about a 72.7% chance of securing its top-seven-protected first-rounder. If Golden State keeps its pick this year, it will still owe a first-rounder to the Jazz. The pick would become top-six-protected next season.
The Warriors “tanked” to get the pick. They benched all of their starters and claimed injuries for most. If they want the pick that badly that they have to cheat, then give it to them. The Jazz were stupid on their own. They wanted to be in the playoffs and gave away their pick to Minnesota. In several circumstances, there were some bizarre events at play to guarantee that the Jazz would make the playoffs. In one key game in Utah, the Spurs kept their three top players home and the Jazz still went down to the last few minutes to secure a close win. The Jazz were given some help to make the playoffs and then be blown out. Could there have been skullduggery at work to ensure that Minnesota kept their pick? I would submit that the answer is yes.
Hey Jacque”conspiracy theory”bquique,
Guess you missed the last game of the Jazz regular season where they knocked off the Suns in a “winner gets to go to the Playoff’s” nail biter. If the Jazz were “given some help” it sure didn’t look like it in that game.
Credit the Jazz for not pulling up lame and putting their team and their fan base in the crapper for the lotto. Here’s hoping that the karma gods are watching, and the Warriors lose their pick. It would serve them right.