While much has been made about how LaMelo Ball doesn’t fit into the current timeline of the Golden State Warriors, should they draft him with the No. 2 pick, there hasn’t been nearly as much discussion as to how he’d fit in there long-term timeline.
In Bleacher Report’s latest mock draft, Jonathan Wasserman broke down a couple of things after slotting Ball to the Warriors, including how the franchise could make a long-term play by drafting, and keeping, Ball.
“Knowing there could be more interest and time to deal after the draft, the Warriors could take Ball and shop him later, or they could keep him and add a special passer between Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, who’d only make the incoming rookie a better player.
“LaMelo could ultimately be ready to take the keys full-time as he nears his second contract and Curry approaches his 35th birthday. While James Wiseman may make sense to fill their hole at center, a below-average shooter, passer and switch defender doesn’t seem like a Warriors pick.”
If the Warriors were focused on long-term stability with the pick, Ball would be a perfect prospect to mold. While no player before or after will be Curry, Ball has a skill set that would translate terrifically as a lead guard into the Warriors’ system. His passing ability and basketball IQ are two of his biggest strengths and both would fit into any system, but particularly Golden State’s.
The problem, obviously, is that the Warriors feel their championship window is still open now. Despite being a top prospect, Ball does little to help the Warriors compete in the present-day. For Golden State, it’ll be a risk-reward assessment of whether the return they can get in a trade for the No. 2 pick is worth skipping on Ball.
As Wasserman notes, though, it’s not necessarily a decision that has to be made by draft night. The team can still draft Ball and develop him while his stock potentially improves before trading him in the right trade with a potentially higher value.
It’s a tricky decision that the Warriors will have to weigh multiples sides of come November’s draft.