The 2024 offseason will forever be known for the demise of the Warriors’s legacy. With Stephen Curry‘s Splash Brother now out of the Bay Area, the franchise had some answers to find. But forget answers, the Warriors now have more questions to solve with the preseason at days length away. Mike Dunleavy took that upon himself and dealt with the curve balls thrown at him during the Dubs’ press conference.
With the media day scheduled for 30th September, the franchise sent their GM out to lay out the titbits of the plan for the 2024/25 season. Stephen Curry is the centerpiece of everything good for the Warriors, his contract situation, and the franchise’s winning ideology came into question to which Dunleavy had a clear response. Not only did he clarify the happening around the team, but Dunleavy also revealed a key promise that influenced Curry’s $62.6 million contract extension.
Speaking to the media, the 44-year-old said, “I think anytime you have an opportunity to extend Steph Curry and have him here longer with our organization, it’s a no-brainer. And so we’ve done that, and I think it comes with an agreement that we’ll continue to push the envelope and try and win at the highest level. And that’s probably not gonna change whether Steph’s here or not.”
Highlighting Curry’s Paris brilliance, Dunleavy further added the importance of cherishing the face of the franchise as long as he’s here. “I think for all of us to appreciate it, come out, view it, watch it, enjoy it,” Dunleavy said. “Because you don’t know how long these things last, but we’re thrilled and excited to have him here for, at least 3 more years.” So basically that’s the window for the Dubs to utilize Curry’s presence and hopefully add at least another banner.
The GSW front office hounded the likes of Paul George and Lauri Markkanen in the summer without success. The current roster is mostly dependent on Curry’s talents and there’s hope among the Dubs nation that Brandin Podziemski and Jonathan Kuminga will step up. There are understandable doubts over Andrew Wiggins’ mental space given his personal tragedy so it will be worth a shot to add another championship-caliber player to the roster. But with the CBA in play, how will that happen? Well, as far as words are concerned, Dunleavy is not overly bothered by it.
Mike Dunleavy wants to be aggressive in the Stephen Curry window
No matter the backlash of the anonymous NBA coach, likening the Warriors to a washed-up rock band, the fact remains that the side is overly dependent on the veteran core. With Curry’s contract and CBA constricts in effect, the Dubs find them in the first apron. How does that affect the trade plans? Dunleavy had the answer.
“You know, you’re always looking to get better, improve your team,” the GM said when asked about the franchise’s aggressiveness in the market. “We’ve got a lot of good basketball players, and then on top of it, we got a lot most of our assets. So we got ways to improve. We’ll be aggressive. That’s kind of always been the deal here at least as long as I’ve been here.”
He acknowledged the fact that adding new pieces around Curry is now tougher but the urgency will always be there. The narrative around Stephen Curry and the supposed maximization of his remaining years will be there till the trade deadline and there’s still time for the Warriors to own up to their summer failure. But is that all talk to keep a shroud of reassurance over the fans? We’ll see in due time!