Making Sense of Dunleavy's Exchange with Reporter Regarding Giannis-Dray Rumors

Golden State Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. got into a terse exchange with a reporter on Saturday.

Before we get to that, let's give it the proper context.

About a minute before the terse exchange, a different reporter asked if Draymond Green's relationship with the organization has changed after Green admitted to being aware that he was in trade conversations.

Dunleavy said that Green's name "was not in conversations other than the ones where teams called me and asked about him, which they do every year."

Dunleavy added, "It was never a possibility of him not being here."

But wait, if Green was never considered in trade talks, then wouldn't that mean Jimmy Butler was in the return package for Giannis Antetokounmpo?

Well, that's exactly what a reporter asked, which led to the terse exchange, which starts at the 5:01 mark here.

Terse Exchange

Reporter: You said nothing was close regarding Draymond; I'd assume nothing was close in your pursuit of Giannis.

Dunleavy: Wait, why is that?

Reporter: Because he would have to be in the deal...

Dunleavy: No, he wouldn't.

Reporter: ...or Jimmy.

Dunleavy: You're putting words in my mouth. That's an unbelievable assumption.

Reporter: So was Jimmy on the table?

Dunleavy: No, no, no. We're not doing that. I'm not going down the roster talking about who's in trades and who's not. We don't do that.

Did the Reporter Make a Fair Assumption?

The reporter assumed that either Green or Butler would have had to be in a trade package for Giannis.

That is an accurate assumption.

If the Warriors tried to keep Green, Butler and Stephen Curry out of a Giannis trade, they would have had to include six players to have enough outgoing salary for a legal trade. But that wouldn't even be the end of it. They'd be left with 10 players under contract and essentially no space under the second apron to sign anyone.

So they would have to make corresponding trades similar to the Trayce Jackson-Davis deal in which they got no salary in return and then replace Jackson-Davis' already-cheap contract with an even cheaper prorated minimum.

The roster would have looked something like this: Steph, Giannis, Butler, Green, Will Richard, Seth Curry, Pat Spencer and seven new players on prorated minimum deals.

Bottom line: If the Warriors discussed a Giannis trade, Green or Butler was in the deal. It's anything but an unbelievable assumption.

Dunleavy's Answers Leave More Questions

It's well-known that team governor Joe Lacob has wanted to trade for Giannis for the last seven years, so there would have been no shame in admitting the Warriors would have traded Green or Butler for the two-time MVP.

What Dunleavy said leaves more questions.

Did the Warriors make a Giannis offer? If so, was it even considered by the Bucks? If the Warriors knew they had no shot at Giannis, why didn't they pivot to Jaren Jackson Jr. or another player who doesn't have major health concerns?

If the goal was to make a move that a) helps the team and b) doesn't hurt the Warriors' chances of getting Giannis in the summer, then you can see why they traded for Kristaps Porzingis, who cost no draft capital to acquire. But if we're being honest, it would have been easier to build a package around Jonathan Kuminga in the offseason because Kuminga is a) younger and healthier and b) actually under contract for next season.

That's why it was important to use the Kuminga contract and picks to trade for a star player, and the Warriors didn't do that.

Tension Could Be Brewing Soon

There's no reason to believe the Warriors will get Giannis when more teams are in on him with even better trade packages this offseason. That should be obvious to Lacob and Dunleavy. The fact that the Warriors didn't make a bigger move suggests Lacob is once again valuing keeping future first-round picks over giving Curry the help he needs.

Of course, the Warriors have to continue to publicly say they are committed to winning, or else they'll risk having Curry request a trade.

But actions speak louder than words. The Warriors just missed their best opportunity to make a move that positions them for a deep playoff run in the 2026-27 season.

In the best-case scenario for the Warriors front office, Porzingis stays relatively healthy, Curry enjoys playing with him, and he re-signs in the offseason and continues to stay relativly healthy next season.

In the worst-case scenario, Porzingis is unavailable, the Warriors fall apart down the stretch, and they have no way to make an offseason trade.

That latter scenario could lead to Kerr not returning to the Warriors and make Curry as frustrated as he's ever been.