Warriors Could Have Nikola Jokic Plan That's Fraught with Issues

Many Golden State Warriors fans are frustrated with the team's offseason, and they have every reason to be.

The team went 37-45 and missed the playoffs last year, and yet the only new player (among those with standard contracts) on the roster is rookie Yaxel Lendeborg.

But there is one thing in common with most of the Warriors' moves—clearing cap space for the 2027 offseason.

Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, Draymond Green, Brandin Podziemski (restricted) and Charles Bassey are not signed for the 2027-28 season.

Kristaps Porzingis has just $3 million of his $20 million guaranteed for 2027-28.

The Warriors have the ability to create max cap space to go after the biggest fish in 2027 free agency.

And the biggest potential fish is Nikola Jokic.

The three-time MVP has a $62.8 million player option for the 2027-28 season he's likely to decline.

Can the Warriors land Jokic? And if not, what will this cap-space plan yield? I explore below.

Can the Warriors Land Jokic?

There are a number of reasons the Dubs won't land Jokic.

For one, Jokic might actually never make it to free agency. He could sign an extension with the Nuggets this season.

But he has said that he will wait until next offseason to sign an extension, which would mean he could technically be heading toward free agency, even if he truly doesn't plan to go elsewhere.

So what the Warriors first need is for the Nuggets to have such a disappointing season that Jokic goes back on his word and actually tests free agency.

If he's ever truly available, it's unlikely that the Dubs would be his choice.

Aside from being able to offer him a max contract, the Warriors don't have much going for them.

Curry would be 39 years old. Jokic would surely want to play with a younger co-star.

To afford Jokic, the Dubs might have to say goodbye to Butler. Even with Butler, it's not a particularly impressive roster.

Denver's roster has some issues as well, but its current supporting cast is better than what Jokic would be surrounded with if he joined the Dubs in 2027.

Even if the Nuggets have a disappointing 2026-27 season, expect Jokic to stay with them.

What Will This Cap-Space Plan Yield?

There is an impressive list of players who could become free agents in 2027, but "could" is the operative word.

Most, if not all, of the top possible free agents have no intention of leaving their current situation.

Among them are Giannis Antetokounmpo (player option), Karl-Anthony Towns (player option) and Kevin Durant (player option).

Anthony Davis would be a realistic option as someone who could reject his player option, but he'll likely only do that if he gets a max contract offer. So the Warriors can dream of giving Davis a max contract when he's 34 years old. Joy.

What's more likely is the Warriors' best-case scenario would be similar to what the Lakers did this offseason.

They used their cap space to trade two first-round picks and two first-round pick swaps to sign Walker Kessler and then signed a number of quality depth players, including Quentin Grimes, Sandro Mamukelashvili and Collin Sexton.

Now, I'm not suggesting that the Warriors would have to give up control of four first-round picks to get a player as impactful as Kessler, but am I saying that Kessler, Grimes, Mamukelashvili and Sexton represent the quality of players the Dubs can expect to use their cap space on.

All four would help the Warriors without a doubt. But would that haul be worth essentially punting on this season by not making an impactful trade?

I have my doubts that creating cap space for Jokic and the rest of the possible 2027 free-agent class will yield good enough results.

Add us as a preferred source on Google