NBA: Golden State Warriors May See Value From Toronto Raptors Defensive Forward

The Golden State Warriors are seeking to bounce back after falling to the bottom of the standings. Hope isn’t lost for the team as they’re in a good position for a strong lottery pick in the succeeding draft. To add to this, there are a lot of free agent talents that the team can benefit from including Toronto Raptors’ defensive specialist Stanley Johnson.

The 2019-2020 season starred a different roster for the Warriors as their veteran players were replaced with rookies and new players. It has been a unique year for the Bay Area squad given the series of injuries and roster changes the franchise went through. The Splash Brothers were hindered with injuries while key players such as Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston have parted ways.

Rekindling their dominant team is still within grasp given the resources that they still have. They still have numerous assets they could lean on including the 2021 pick they received from the Minnesota Timberwolves.

With all of these options, the Warriors can further deepen their roster by taking advantage of the free-agent market. Per Blue Man Hoop, one player they can look into is the Raptors’, Stanley Johnson. While he has seen only minimal minutes, he has proven in his career before that he is a steady contributor. During his days with the Detroit Pistons, Johnson has proven to be one of the more versatile defensive forwards on the floor.

Having someone like Johnson can develop from the current members of the team such as Draymond Green who is known to be an all-around forward. In addition to this, he can assist recently acquired Andrew Wiggins on the small forward post. The former number one draft pick has been a versatile scorer and would greatly benefit from someone like Johnson who has garnered a reputation as a reputable defender.

While plans are not certain yet for the Warriors’ front office, it would be interesting to see how Golden State approaches the upcoming years. It will be important for the development of their young players to be coupled with reliable defenders who are willing to learn from each other.