The NBA trade deadline may have come and gone, but one trade that was approved before the deadline has yet to be fulfilled for a pretty understandable reason.
According to ESPN NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the Warriors have until 9:30 p.m. ET on Sunday to make a decision on whether to finalize the four-team trade they agreed to to acquire point guard Gary Payton II from the Portland Trail Blazers. The reason behind the extended time they’re taking is an issue with his physical.
“Golden State believes important information on Payton’s abdominal injury was withheld prior to Thursday deadline deal involving James Wiseman, Saddiq Bey and several draft picks. Warriors expect Payton to miss a significant part of the remaining regular season, per sources,” Woj wrote.
If the Warriors believe they were misinformed about Payton’s availability, that would certainly be grounds to nix the trade. Though it would certainly make things awkward for James Wiseman and Saddiq Bey, who were supposed to join the Detroit Pistons and Atlanta Hawks respectively as part of the deal.
Golden State believes important information on Payton’s abdominal injury was withheld prior to Thursday deadline deal involving James Wiseman, Saddiq Bey and several draft picks. Warriors expect Payton to miss a significant part of the remaining regular season, per sources. https://t.co/aYeKLSg1IE
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 11, 2023
Last year Gary Payton II appeared in 71 regular season games and 12 playoff games, including five NBA Finals games, en route to winning a title with the Warriors. He became a free agent after the season and signed a three-year, $28 million deal with the Trail Blazers.
But we’re more than midway through the season and Payton has played in only 15 games.
Will the Warriors finalize the trade, or will everyone have to go back to their original teams?