SAN FRANCISCO — The past few days have been a game of wait-and-see, but GP2 is officially on the Dubs.
Less than an hour before the Super Bowl kicked off on Sunday, the Warriors reportedly agreed to finalize the four-team deal to acquire guard Gary Payton II that was consummated before Thursday’s deadline.
Warriors president of basketball operations/general manager Bob Myers met with the media on Monday morning to discuss the trade, but wasn’t at liberty to discuss much about Golden State’s complaint filed to the NBA about how the Blazers handled the situation.
“There’s things I can’t say for legal reasons and for HIPAA reasons,” Myers said. “That’s the truth. I’m not trying to deflect it. At some point if we have more information to give you, we will. But me speaking publicly on it, behind the scenes, I don’t think moves anything forward. … That’s all going to be handled at a different level and not today, not for me.”
The Warriors are reportedly “upset” with Portland not disclosing the extent of Payton’s core muscle injury, as he failed his post-trade physical. He needed offseason surgery on it and missed the first two and a half months of the season rehabbing, so the Warriors knew it was a pre-existing issue. However, Payton reportedly needed the aid of Toradol, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, to stay on the floor for the Blazers, which wasn’t known before the trade. Payton played 22 minutes against the Warriors on Wednesday, the day before the deadline.
According to Myers, the Warriors will re-evaluate Payton in a month and hope to get him back before the playoffs. The play-in tournament will be held on April 11-14, before the first round of the playoffs begins on April 15, which gives the Warriors and Payton a two-month runway before the postseason.
“It is our determination that he’s not ready to play right now,” Myers said. “But when we get him back and hopefully we do get him back at some point, the goal would be pre-playoffs. That would be the hope, but until we get a sense of how the rehab process is going, I can’t really speculate.”
Myers said the Warriors considered rescinding the entire deal, as amendments weren’t allowed once the trade deadline had passed. Ultimately, the Warriors decided to keep the injured Payton, over bringing back James Wiseman from the Detroit Pistons. Payton was spotted sitting next to Myers during Saturday's game against the Lakers.
Payton’s contract helps save the Warriors $7 million in salary and taxes this year, along with $30 million next year. Myers said having the contract framework in place with Payton – he signed through 2024-25 with a player option the final year – was also a factor in the trade. Not to mention his proven ability to thrive in coach Steve Kerr’s system.
Despite being listed at 6-foot-3, Payton is versatile and ferocious defender who can wreak havoc setting screens and lurking in the dunker spot on offense.
“Our system is not simple,” Myers said. “So to get someone that knows our system – that’s the hope, when Gary comes back, whenever that is – is that there’s a familiarity. A lot of the same players he played with last year. We play him a little differently than other teams. I think that’s why he did so well with us. Our system is a little unique. Part of the reason we did it is the familiarity. We’ve seen how much he helps us.”
