2015/16 Finish – 25-57, 11^th in West

Season Highlight

There was not a lot to be excited about last season in the Bay area.  As usual the team missed the playoffs but after hiring gm mailo early on the season it seems that at least they have a gm who is going to stick around and has a plan for the future.  The fact that mailo is still at the helm and nothing crazy has happened for about 6 months is a highlight for Warriors who are craving stability, let alone success.

Season Lowlight

NLL history doesn’t lie and unfortunately in the case of the Warriors they have been bottom feeders for their entire tenure in the league.  With only one playoff appearance way back in Season 2003/4 it’s easy to find lowlights for a team who’s fans have gotten used to being kicked in the guts year after year.  Last season wasn’t different but perhaps the fact that the team had ‘buzzards luck’ with season ending injuries to two of their key players in Wilson Chandler and Grievis Vasquez ensuring that things were going to go from bad to worse.

Best Trade

The Atlanta Hawks send Rasual Butler, Steve Blake, Louis Amundson and Dario Saric to the Golden State Warriors. The Golden State Warriors send O.J. Mayo to the Atlanta Hawks. The Golden State Warriors send Jarnell Stokes to the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Atlanta Hawks send a 2nd-Rounder (LAL), 2nd-Rounder (Phi) and 2nd-Rounder (LAL) to the Golden State Warriors. The Memphis Grizzlies send a 2nd-Rounder (Ind) to the Golden State Warriors.

Let’s distill this down for the Warriors.

Here they get the rights to Dario Saric as well as receiving 4 2^nd round picks in exchange for O.J. Mayo and Jarnell Stokes.  This is a great deal since Mayo and Stokes are likely out of the NLL.  Saric has already showed how good he could be in international play and pre-season scrimmages and there many scouts who predict he could one day be an NLL Allstar.  Those 2^nd round picks ended up being Demetrius Jackson, Marcus Paige and Stephen Zimmerman – 3 guys who have a chance to become decent NLL players in the future.

Worst Trade

The LA Clippers send Quincy Pondexter to the Golden State Warriors.
The Golden State Warriors send a 2nd-Rounder (GS) to the LA Clippers.

To his credit, gm mailo didn’t really make any ‘bad’ trades which is a welcome change for a franchise who has been used as a ‘farm team’ by opposing gm’s for the past decade.  Perhaps this deal, whilst not a big deal is the worst since when you are rebuilding from the bottom up, every pick counts and sending away a 2^nd for an injury prone veteran doesn’t add up.

Other Notable Trades

The Golden State Warriors send K.J. McDaniels to the Orlando Magic. The Orlando Magic send Marcus Smart and Larry Nance Jr. to the Golden State Warriors.
The Golden State Warriors send a 1st-Rounder (GS) and 1st-Rounder (Bos) to the Orlando Magic. The Orlando Magic send a 1st-Rounder (Dal) to the Golden State Warriors.

Some people might argue that this is the best trade for the Warriors but I just don’t like to see a rebuilding team trading away picks.  But anyhow it may have paid off on this occasion as the Warriors may have acquired two cornerstone building blocks in Smart and Nance Jr from this deal.

The Boston Celtics send O.J. Mayo and K.J. McDaniels to the Golden State Warriors. The Golden State Warriors send Ty Lawson to the Boston Celtics.
The Boston Celtics send a 1st-Rounder (Bos) to the Golden State Warriors.

Not a bad deal in the end for the Warriors.  Ty Lawson has had his troubles whilst McDaniels was used in the deal above to acquire Smart and Nance Jr.

The Charlotte Hornets send Steve Novak and Kosta Koufos to the Golden State Warriors. The Golden State Warriors send Nene Hilario to the Charlotte Hornets.
The Golden State Warriors send a 2nd-Rounder (GS) and 2nd-Rounder (LAL) to the Charlotte Hornets.

Not sure this was such a great deal.  The Warriors were sick of Nene being injured and got rid of him in exchange for solid big Koufos and Novak but they also dealt away two 2^nd rounders.

Best Free Agent Signing

Ian Clark trying to make any NLL team was signed to a 1yr minimum deal and it looks as though his ability to shoot the ball may well help the Warriors this season.

Worst Free Agent Signing

When you have a reputation for losing, free agents generally don’t come flocking.

The Star – Marcus Smart

This was a toss up between Smart and Harrison Barnes with Smart just getting the nod due to his overall stats in multiple categories.  Marcus has been given the keys to this team and he delivered averaging 20.6 points, 5.1 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 1.9 steals per game.  Alot will depend on his growth as to whether the Warriors can take a step forward in 2016/17.

Surprise – Roy Hibbert

In a league where the value of big men is waning, Roy Hibbert had a surprisingly good season averaging 12.2 points, 9.7 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game.  Not only that but in a team where everybody else was getting injured big Roy played in all 82 games.  Now that is a surprise!

The Goat – The Warriors medical staff

This is a team lacking in talent and depth but not only that it was possibly the most injured team in the NLL last season.  Big injuries to key starters in Vasquez, Chandler, Nene meant that gm mailo and his coaching staff never really had a chance.  Hopefully a brand new medical team is on board for season 2016/17.

Draft Report Card

Dario Saric – as mentioned above, the Warriors made a great deal to claim the rights to Dario Saric.  He will make his debut this season and looks set to play a big part in the franchise’s future.

Demetrius Jackson – an athletic PG who looks likely to end up in the D-League for much of the season.

Marcus Paige – Another PG.  He has a nice outside shot and had a solid College career.  Look for him to play a lot of D-League action too.  But a nice addition for down the road.

Stephen Zimmerman – a big man prospect who is unlikely to make the roster this season.

Upcoming Free Agents

Roy Hibbert – The big man had a pretty decent season however like many who have come before him he will likely bolt in free agency seeking greener pastures.

Harrison Barnes – This is a biggie.  Gm mailo has extended the QO to Barnes and promised him a big pay day making him a RFA.  You can be sure the vultures are circling and another team will try and coax him away from the Bay Area, but I don’t think gm mailo is gonna let that happen.

Greivis Vasquez – Greivis blew out his achilles last season after a sparkling start.  He wont be tempting fate twice in a Warriors uniform.

Steve Blake – Is this guy still in the league?

Ian Clark – a nice free agency signing a year ago.  Clark is now an RFA and may well carve out a nice niche for the Warriors this season.

Louis Amundson – I heard this guy had a hair cut?

Johnny O’Bryant – I have always like this guys name but sadly that is not enough to make in the NLL.

Wilson Chandler – gm mailo would love to ink Wilson to a new deal and it seems at this stage that this is quite likely but stranger things have happened in NLL free agency.

Looking to the Future

The Warriors look to finally have a stable gm in mailo.  After a long debut season watching on as his team broke down before him, the best thing was he didn’t do anything silly to hurt the team.  In fact he did the opposite and acquired some nice pieces.  Going into season 2016/17 there is reason for some optimism with a nice looking young core of Nance Jr-Saric-Barnes-Smart.  Of course it will still be a tough road with the likelihood that the fight will begin even before the season begins with the top priority being urging Harrison Barnes to sign on in the Bay.  This coupled with securing the return of Wilson Chandler and inking Ian Clark would really help this team going forward.

Combine this with solid veteran Kosta Koufos and young stretch PF Mike Muscala who is rumoured to have a had a monster off season the Warriors future is starting to look brighter with 8 real NLL players all under the age of 30 on their roster.

They will likely win more games than last years 25 but gm mailo needs to remain patient through 2016/17 and use the season as somewhat of a consolidation year, continuing to build without making any rash moves to win now.