Adam Silver needs to fix the NBA Draft.
Because when the Warriors selected Boston College center Quinten Post on Thursday afternoon, I had no idea that the Warriors did, in fact, acquire him.
No, I — like the rest of you and ESPN, too — thought that the Warriors were trading pick No. 52 to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Lindy Waters III, a depth wing.
Turns out, the Warriors did make that trade.
Then they bought that pick back… from Portland, who had traded for it after the Warriors and Thunder agreed to their trade.
It’s enough to make your head spin.
What’s not jarring, however, is the selection of Post.
There’s a simple argument for him as a selection: he is 7 feet tall and can shoot. Add in the ability to put the ball on the floor and some nice passing skills and you have a ready-for-the-NBA, plug-and-play stretch center — someone who can immediately take the Warriors’ second unit to another offensive level.
Or, in other words, the Warriors finally acquired Mike Muscala — the stretch five whom the Warriors have been linked to for the past 20 years, give or take.
(Post, huh? What’s the opposite of nominative determinism?)
Post — a native of the Netherlands — really does have a sweet stroke. And it’s not all show and no substance, either — he posted a 51/43/82 line last season and a 54/42/86 season the year before.
Can he play defense? Not really. He lacks NBA athleticism, posting the lowest vertical leap at the combine (27 inches). He’s going to struggle against the pick-and-roll — it’s not an issue of being off-balance or surprised, it’s simply an issue of physical ability. And at 25 years old, there’s little reason to think it’s going to get much better.
But who cares? He can shoot and that’s the name of the game in today’s NBA.
And while he should be a depth piece for the Warriors, part of me thinks he’d be a perfect fit next to Draymond Green.
Far too often last season the Warriors put out lineups that had fewer than four shooters. In fact, sometimes they only had two players who were willing and able to space the floor. This was a different kind of “ruining the league.”
With the additions of Post and Waters (acquired for this No. 52 pick from Oklahoma City), the Warriors have two players who will not have an issue shooting from distance. It’s a nice change.
Waters has some serious range and a smooth shot off the dribble — you can do a whole lot worse when adding an end-of-the-bench player. Post can spread the floor on offense and be covered up by Green on defense — if Steve Kerr decides to pair them.
Plus, because Post is Dutch, if he’s not going to get any minutes this season, they can stash him overseas and save some money against the luxury tax.
There’s still a lot of work for the Warriors to do this offseason. Friday is a big day, with Chris Paul’s salary guarantee set to activate if the Dubs don’t waive him. Then there’s free agency, where Golden State needs to add quality veterans with exception-level contracts and try to re-sign Klay Thompson.
But they added two interesting pieces in Post and Waters. That’s a nice start — even if it took a while to figure out that is, in fact, what they did.
