Trades in the NBA often are the result of a lot of moving parts. The devil is in the details, as they say. But when deals are completed, all fans are told is who and what has been moved. They're not usually told the different versions of a deal were discussed before finally agreeing on something. Fans are also not usually privy to the things that could have made a trade exponentially more difficult.
Times have changed, though. This is the information age, and things get out, slipping through the cracks of professionalism to the benefit of the public. The Athletic's Anthony Slater provided the most recent interesting nugget from the De'Aaron Fox trade without mentioning Fox at all.
"Zach LaVine is the only of the four big names traded this weekend that was on the Warriors' realistic radar... opted to let the sped-up LaVine option pass in pursuit of loftier ambitions." - Slater
Some of the latest buzz on the Warriors leading up to the trade deadline. Waiting game could help their leverage as Jimmy Butler, Miami, Phoenix, Bradley Beal, Kevin Durant situation nears its end point, but that's attached to opportunity risk. https://t.co/DqHPMwlvIi
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) February 3, 2025
Warriors could have made a Fox deal harder for Spurs/Kings
A common sentiment in the NBA community is that the Bulls lost their part of the deal. They traded away Zach LaVine, who may have an expensive contract but is a hell of a player. While Tre Jones and Zach Collins are great guys, and Kevin Huerter is a solid player, they don't amount to what LaVine had. The Spurs also sent them back their top-10 protected first-round pick.
Had the Warriors stepped in to make a deal for LaVine before the Kings and Spurs approached Chicago, the option to fleece the Bulls may not have been on the table. Moving off of Tre Jones is sad because he's a nice person, but the team can recover from losing his on-court production easily. The same can be said for Collins, and I'm being nice.
For the type of player San Antonio added, they gave up shockingly little. A chunk of that is due to Fox's determination to get to Alamo City to play with Victor Wembanyama. The Kings had little leverage since other teams would be hesitant to give up too much for a player they may only have for a year.
They had to get something for Fox, and they were determined to get Stephon Castle out of the deal, but Brian Wright would not budge on their Slam Dunk Contest contestant. It put them in a tough spot with the team spiraling, losing game after game.
The Kings wouldn't have been able to sell their fans on shipping off their franchise point guard without getting something in return. Fortunately, the Bulls have been desperate to get from under LaVine's contract, making the trade that much easier for the Spurs, who benefitted from two organizations that don't seem to know what they're doing.
The Warriors usually do know what they're doing, and that's the baffling part. Slater suggested that Golden State has their eyes on bigger targets, but they've struck out on every elite player they've swung for over the past few years. Had they stuck with obtaining LaVine, there's no telling what the Spurs would have had to give up to get Fox.
LaVine may have been the Warriors' best bet, but they simply walked away because they thought they could do better. That remains to be seen, but that's their problem. They solved one for the Spurs, so they're alright in my book.