High lottery pick

One of the perks of a not-so-successful season comes when it’s time to roll the ping-pong balls out and select the draft order. Being the team with the worst record in the league, the Warriors will be one of three organizations with the highest odds to select first in the 2020 NBA Draft.

All potential season returns from the COVID-19 season suspension center around the plan of playing approximately five more regular season games, leaving little room for fluctuation in the standings. Golden State will likely end up with a top-three pick at minimum.

There are obviously a couple options for them. They can trade the draft pick, alongside a player, likely one of their four players on max deals will be included, and get in return a ready to compete, plug-and-play veteran. This is ideal if they are looking to go all in and believe they are capable of competing for a championship next season.

The other option is to keep the pick and select a high-level prospect to join their contending team. A lot of people have been linking them to James Wiseman. Wiseman was number one on the majority of draft boards heading into the season, but after a 12-game suspension due to an NCAA investigation, Wiseman decided to leave Memphis and train for the draft on his own.

I don’t personally see Wiseman as a good fit in Golden State. Even though he is a center, which fills the biggest positional need for Golden State, he is extremely inexperienced.

Athletes drafted after their freshman year typically need time to develop in the league before they can make a serious impact. Wiseman is essentially being drafted out of high school. The last time he played competitive ball was in his senior year of high school, and it’s been about an entire calendar year since then.

I’m not doubting that Wiseman will be a good player, but the Warriors should look for someone who has been playing at a competitive level, and someone who has some experience. Obi Toppin and LaMelo Ball stand out to me. Toppin has played an extra year of college compared to the majority of the highly-touted prospects and Ball has played two seasons of professional basketball overseas.

The Warriors hold a lot of power with a high draft pick, and have the potential to do something which could make a big impact on their team for the upcoming season.