Hawks Make Bold Move Warriors Wish They Would've Made with Wiseman

One of the biggest mistakes in recent draft history was the Golden State Warriors taking James Wiseman with the second pick of the 2020 draft.

Among the players the Warriors should have taken instead are LaMelo Ball (third pick), Onyeka Okongwu (sixth pick), Deni Avdija (ninth pick) and Tyrese Haliburon (12th pick).

But as I argued here, holding onto Wiseman too long deserved more criticism than the pick itself.

Wiseman had an up-and-down rookie season before missing his entire second second with an injury. The Warriors won the 2022 Finals without him, and that's when they should have dealt him while he had value to other teams as a mystery box with potential.

Instead, he had a disastrous start to the 2022-23 season, and the Dubs sold extremely low on him, getting Gary Payton II back in a four-team trade.

This past month, the Hawks made a trade for Lu Dort that represents the type of move the Warriors wish they would have made in 2022.

Hawks Move on from Risacher Just in Time

The Hawks took Zaccharie Risacher with the No. 1 pick of the 2024 draft, and in two seasons he's been underwhelming.

He was so underwhelming that head coach Quin Snyder essentially benched him during Atlanta's first-round series loss to the Knicks, opting to instead play Jonathan Kuminga as the first forward off the bench.

The Hawks could have kept Risacher this offseason under the guise that he could improve. But waiting until a couple months into the season could have killed the trade value Risacher has left.

Pouncing now allowed the Hawks to make a brilliant move for Lu Dort in a three-team trade with the Thunder and Mavericks.

Imagine how much better the Warriors would have been in the 2022-23 season and beyond if they traded Wiseman for a player of Dort's caliber to support their championship core.

Had the Warriors sold Wiseman during the 2022 offseason with other young players and picks, perhaps they could have acquired OG Anunoby or Lauri Markannen before they truly broke out.

Instead, they got an injured Payton, and they ended up losing in the second round of the 2023 playoffs to the Lakers with a roster that felt like it was one good rotation player short of being a true title contender.

Warriors Made Similar Mistake with Kuminga

The Warriors didn't learn their lesson, holding onto Kuminga too long before trading him for the oft-injured Kristaps Porzingis at the 2026 trade deadline.

Over the years, the Warriors were linked to Anunoby, Pascal Siakam and Alex Caruso trades, but each of them would have required Kuminga in the return package.

Of course, there is risk in giving up a young player too early. For example, the Kings traded Tyrese Haliburton halfway through his second season for Domantas Sabonis. Haliburton has become one of the best point guards in the NBA, easily surpassing Sabonis in player rankings.

Team governor Joe Lacob and the Warriors front office understandably were concerned that Wiseman or Kuminga would break out if they gave up on them too early.

But considering Stephen Curry was still in his prime, the Dubs should have focused more on the present than the potential of their draft picks.

Now they not only have no conference finals appearances in the last four years, but they also have no obvious future cornerstone, as their gambles on Wiseman and Kuminga did not pay off.

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