It’s never too early to dream.
It’s never too early to start dreaming. Yes, the 2025 NBA All-Star Game is still 207 days away, but we can still start thinking about which members of the Golden State Warriors might represent the Dubs for Team West ... and they’ll really be representing, because the Chase Center is hosting the weekend of festivities.
We all know the deal with the Warriors and the All-Star Game. Assuming good health, Steph Curry is a borderline lock. Andrew Wiggins and Draymond Green have outside chances, but would need to turn back the clock a little — and stay on the court. And a trade for a player like Lauri Markkanen would quickly give the Dubs another player in the running.
But what if one of the young players made the All-Star team? Golden State has a young core of five intriguing players: fourth-year wings Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody, second-year pros Trayce Jackson-Davis and Brandin Podziemski, and incoming rookie Quinten Post. What if one of those five repped the West?
It’s quite unlikely, but certainly not impossible. Here’s a ranking, from most likely to least likely.
It’s been more than three years since Kuminga was drafted, and he’s still as polarizing as the day he was a mid-lottery selection. Some think he’s a do-everything future superstar in the Kawhi Leonard mold. Others think he’s a classic case of raw skill missing the basketball talent necessary to succeed. Those at-odds sentiments are held by Warriors fans and the general public alike.
Hopefully in year four we’ll learn more about what Kuminga’s future looks like, but if year three taught us anything, it’s that there’s a whole lot of reason to dream big on JK. His per-36 minute numbers — 21.9 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.0 steals, on 59.8% true-shooting — paint the picture of a player who is already knocking on the door of the All-Star Game. His defensive versatility showed itself throughout the course of the season, as did his game-changing potential: during a 13-game stretch from mid-January to mid-February, Kuminga was the clear-cut second-best player on the team, averaging 23.5 points and 6.2 rebounds per game while shooting 58.7% from the field and 43.8% from distance.
Three things stand in between Kuminga and a trip to the All-Star Game: consistency, role, and a stacked Western Conference frontcourt logjam. He needs to play in control each night, and not waver between being a star and being unplayable. He needs to both earn and be trusted with a larger role — a starting role in which he plays starter minutes and is looked at as a true No. 2 option. And he needs either some luck or to take a leap given that the West already has Nikola Jokić, Anthony Davis, Kawhi Leonard, Karl-Anthony Towns, Kevin Durant, Rudy Gobert, Victor Wembanyama, and Leonard in the frontcourt.
These rankings are only about the odds of making the 2025 All-Star Game. If they were just ranking the odds that each player makes the All-Star Game at some point in their career, I’d be tempted to put Podziemski ahead of Kuminga.
As is, he’s a clear-cut No. 2. Podziemski also flashed star potential last year ... it was as if Chris Paul’s amazing assist-to-turnover ratio was contagious and had been passed to Podziemski, and it often looked the rookie had possessed Russell Westbrook’s skills, Space Jam style, whenever a rebound was up for grabs.
Podz has a less-crowded path to the All-Star Game than Kuming because he’s in the backcourt, where there are fewer stars in the West. But from a talent and opportunity standpoint, he’s a little further behind. Right now Podziemski’s strengths are defense, rebounding, and decision-making, while scoring is arguably a weakness. That’s probably a huge part of why Steve Kerr trusts him so much, and why he’s such a good player ... but unless you’re a Defensive Player of the Year candidate or a CP3-level passer, it’s nearly impossible to make the All-Star team without scoring 20 points per game. Does Podziemski have that in him this year? And will he get the requisite minutes to show that off now that Buddy Hield and De’Anthony Melton are on the team, with Kerr openly desiring to find more minutes for Moody? We’ll find out.
With Jackson-Davis developing further and the Warriors offense getting something of a makeover from Terry Stotts, it’s easy to envision a world in with TJD takes off with a steady stream of pick-and-rolls, throwing down Curry lob after Curry lob.
Jackson-Davis had fairly gaudy numbers last year, albeit in a minimal role: per 36 minutes, the rookie averaged 17.2 points, 10.9 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks, while shooting 70.2% from the field. Those are borderline All-Star numbers if he were actually playing 32+ minutes a night, especially if he keeps building on the defensive improvements he showed last year.
Still, it will take more than that. Jackson-Davis will need to either take a huge leap on defense, or have the offense revolve around him a little more. He has the look of a player who could one day average 20 and 10 with strong defense, and that could get him into a future All-Star Game ... just probably not this future All-Star Game.
Nothing about Moody’s game screams All-Star. He’s the epitome of a do-everything, mistake-free role player, and that’s a huge compliment. But he’s not a guy who takes over games or puts up huge numbers. And that’s perfectly fine!
At the same time, he’s a player whose story is far from being written. He’s only three years into his career, and he just turned 22. And the best thing we saw from him last year was a notable uptick in aggressiveness in nearly every area of the game.
With Klay Thompson gone, there’s a chance that Moody slides into the starting two-guard role. And if he does that, maybe he’ll run with it, and show some more star qualities.
Then again, it’s perfectly fine if not. High-quality role players are great things to have.
It’s safe to say that Post making the All-Star Game as a rookie would be one of the most surprising things in the NBA this season. You can see the blueprint for it eventually ... seven-footers with silky-smooth three-point shots have limitless potential. But there’s no rational reason to think that potential will be realized in his first season ... or that he’ll get anything resembling starting playing time.
