OAKLAND, Calif. — The Golden State Warriors have made some splashy moves already this offseason. Just don't expect another one on draft night.
At least that's what general manager Larry Riley predicts.
With the trade talk surrounding leading scorer Monta Ellis only growing louder ahead of Thursday night's NBA draft, Riley said he isn't planning to send Ellis anywhere - at least not yet.
"It's very likely that he will not be traded on draft night or even through the summer. I'm not looking at that happening. It would take something that I don't see for that to happen," Riley said Monday.
For all the changes the Warriors have made this offseason, they've done nothing to improve the roster.
Any coversation about overhauling a franchise that has made the playoffs just once since 1994 begins and ends with the talented tandem of Ellis and Stephen Curry. The two undersized guards are similar in style and stature, forming one of the highest scoring backcourts in the league but also one of the worst defensive duos.
Curry is considered untradeable by the team because he's two years younger and has a more friendly contract than Ellis, the eighth-highest scorer in the league last season at 24.1 points per game. Riley, while acknowledging that he still gets far more trade inquiries for Curry, also knows his biggest bargaining piece is Ellis because of salary cap limitations.
That doesn't make the decision any easier.
"How many two guards are better than Monta Ellis? It's a short list," he said. "Maybe two. Or you can talk to some people who will say three or four. I would say he's one of the top five two guards in this league. He's pretty special. We would be stupid to deny that we have a special player in Monta Ellis."
With the 11th pick in the draft, the Warriors aren't likely to receive an immediate jolt. They are merely hoping to select a player who can become a rotation regular, and anything more next season would be a bonus.
The Warriors' biggest need in the draft is to bolster an undersized frontcourt, and that won't be easy in what is widely considered a weak collection of rookies. Among the most likely candidates that could still be available are power forwards Bismack Biyombo of Spain, Kansas' Markieff Morris and Texas' Tristan Thompson; and bigger guards such as Washington State's Klay Thompson or Colorado's Alec Burks.
"The likelihood of getting somebody that changes a team isn't very good," Riley said. "And if you look at the history of guys, even in last year's draft, in some cases guys go to teams high in the draft and they didn't win as many games as they did the year before."
All the more reason the Warriors could take a gamble.
New owners Joe Lacob and Peter Guber have shown they aren't afraid to take risk since they bought the franchise last fall for a league record $450 million. They pulled Jerry West out of retirement to be a front-office consultant, hired sports agent Bob Myers as assistant general manager and future GM and broadcaster Mark Jackson as coach despite no previous experience.
All have spoken highly of Ellis and expressed confidence that the double point guard dynamic could work. They also have shifted directions at a moment's notice.
"They're risk-takers," Riley said of ownership. "But what they didn't tell you is they're calculated risk-takers. They're not just going to Las Vegas. They'll take a risk, and I'll go along with it. I'm on board with that."
The Associated Press
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