Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports
Of All NBA Draft Prospects, Warriors May Covet Avdija Most
The Golden State Warriors have the NBA's worst record at the hiatus and at some point, you have to believe there will indeed be an NBA draft.
So who are they eyeing? Memphis center James Wiseman? Well-traveled basketball celebrity LaMelo Ball? Or may they just trade the No. 1 overall pick if they land it?
Well, according to Connor Letourneau of the San Francisco Chronicle, the answers to those questions appear to be no, no and maybe.
"According to multiple league sources The Chronicle contacted in the past few days, the Warriors -- contrary to what mock drafts might suggest -- aren't believed to be high on two of the three players being mentioned as possibilities at the No. 1 pick: former Memphis center James Wiseman and point guard LaMelo Ball, who last played for the Illawarra Hawks of Australia's National Basketball League," Letourneau reported.
"As one source put it, 'I think they'd only take one of those two if they were trading down in the draft and taking them for another team.'"
Instead, the top two prospects on the Warriors' draft board could be Georgia guard Anthony Edwards and especially, Israeli forward Deni Avdija of Maccabi Tel Aviv.
Letourneau wrote that general manager Bob Myers asked coach Steve Kerr to check out the top seven or eight players on the Warriors' draft radar. That may be partially how the key decision-makers came to the conclusion that they aren't overly interested in Wiseman or Ball.
And next season, whenever that may be, the Warriors are expected to have a healthy Steph Curry and Klay Thompson back on the floor -- which is actually more valuable than even winning the draft lottery.
Right now, the Warriors are like everyone else, waiting and wondering when things might get back to normal, doing their due diligence as best they can under the circumstances.
A lot can change between now and the draft. It is scheduled for June 25, but many seem to think it will be pushed back to the fall.
There may also still be a draft lottery, and while that hasn't been determined, it could drop the Warriors to a lower pick. But again, the idea of the NBA conducting a lottery this offseason remains very much in doubt.
Either way, today it is the Warriors who have the greatest odds of possessing the top pick. What they might do with it is already starting to result in some intrigue.
Sam Amico covers the NBA and Cleveland Cavaliers for SI.com. Follow him @AmicoHoops.
