Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry is still bending defenses to his will, but everything around him is heavier, slower, and less certain. Even from a distance, the problem with the team is clear: age, injury, and failed development. The Warriors are at a rare NBA crossroads where loyalty, competitiveness, and legacy are all pulling in different directions.

“It’s tough right now, ET, to watch the Golden State Warriors,” NBA insider Chris Mannix told co-host Evan Turner during an episode of Open Floor. “Steph Curry’s still playing at a Steph Curry-like level. He is great, but the pieces around him just aren’t making sense anymore.”

It’s clear to anyone watching the Warriors that the tension between Curry’s brilliance and a roster that isn’t enough to compete has become the defining issue of the team’s season so far. Draymond Green remains the emotional leader, and Mannix was careful to not dismiss his overall impact, but it’s clear that the role has changed.

Mannix detailed the limitations with Green at this stage in his career, especially his lack of outside shooting, as well as being forced to play full-time center for the Warriors instead of being a power forward. Leaning into smaller lineups might have been the new thing a decade ago, but now, all it leads to is a regression with Green’s play.

That limitation is important because the Warriors do not have the luxury of being able to hide their weaknesses with overwhelming talent. Jonathan Kuminga, one of the team’s young pieces hasn’t been able to develop as the team hoped, with Mannix openly suggesting a trade is coming. The only question left is how much value is left to extract.

“Kuminga’s value has kind of bottomed out,” Mannix said. “He hasn’t played well. He’s been injured. His clashes with Steve Kerr are becoming a bigger and bigger deal. Teams aren’t bending over backwards to go get Jonathan Kuminga right now.”

That tension has now led insiders to a dramatic conclusion: salvaging Curry’s final championship window may require an all-in pursuit of a generational superstar like Giannis Antetokounmpo—a swing so massive that its success or failure could also determine whether Steve Kerr survives the aftermath.

Giannis Antetokounmpo Gamble May Be Warriors’ Last Path Forward With Stephen Curry

Evan Turner didn’t hesitate to discuss how extreme the Warriors’ options have become, and for him, there’s only one move that can truly alter the team’s trajectory.

“This summer, like I remember seeing [Stephen Curry] and [Giannis Antetokounmpo] have a conversation,” Turner told Mannix. “That’s the only way I think this could work.”

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It’s a bold idea. Antetokounmpo is one of the few players capable of utilizing Curry’s gravity into a new competitive window. He’s a frontcourt force who, like Green, can give Curry clear opportunities to score, while also covering defensive gaps, and more importantly, scoring in bunches at an efficient rate inside the arc.

A bold precedent comes from the Los Angeles Lakers in 2019, when an aging LeBron James—much like Stephen Curry today—faced a roster too thin to contend despite his brilliance.

The Lakers surrendered Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart, and three first-round picks (including the No. 4 overall) to acquire Anthony Davis from New Orleans, instantly pairing their superstar with elite two-way firepower.

That gamble paid off spectacularly: Davis and James powered the Lakers to the 2020 NBA championship in Davis’s first season, silencing doubters and proving a superstar trade can reboot a contender overnight. The Warriors, now grappling with Curry’s 37-year-old brilliance amid a creaky lineup featuring 35-year-old Draymond Green and 36-year-old Jimmy Butler, stare down the same crossroads—loyalty versus legacy.

A Giannis trade could mirror the Lakers’ masterstroke, delivering the co-star Curry needs to chase rings before time runs out.

One thing that Mannix noted, which highlights the dire circumstances, is Steve Kerr. The long-time head coach is widely respected, but in the final year of his contract, and has been strikingly honest in recent months, openly admitting the team can’t keep pace with young contenders like Oklahoma City or San Antonio.

“That’s revealing when it’s coming from the head coach,” Mannix said. “So I wonder if all this… does this lead to an amicable breakup between Kerr and the Warriors?”

If the franchise chooses stagnation over aggression, then even Kerr’s alignment with Curry might not be enough to keep them on the same roster.

The Warriors lack clarity about where they’re headed, and standing pat would be an admission that this era has already come to an end, whether anyone says it aloud or not.