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Golden State Warriors: 5 potential trade packages for D’Angelo Russell

By Marc Delucchi

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 19: D'Angelo Russell #1 of the Brooklyn Nets reacts during their game against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center on March 19, 2019 in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 19: D'Angelo Russell #1 of the Brooklyn Nets reacts during their game against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center on March 19, 2019 in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /
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D'Angelo Russell
ORLANDO, FL – APRIL 19: Aaron Gordon #00 of the Orlando Magic attacks the basket as he is defended by Kyle Lowry #7 of the Toronto Raptors during Game Three of the first round of the 2019 NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs at the Amway Center on April 19, 2019 in Orlando, Florida. The Raptors defeated the Magic 98 to 93. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. D’Angelo Russell Golden State Warriors D’Angelo Russell (Photo by Don Juan Moore/Getty Images) /

The Second-Tier Star Swap: Orlando Magic
Centerpiece: Aaron Gordon

Predicting the Orlando Magic is just asking to be wrong. While the front-office and coaching staffs have been revolving doors for years, they have quietly built a respectable roster. Last season, the Magic even snuck into the playoffs.

This offseason the team brought back core big-man Nikola Vucevic on a long-term contract and are returning essentially the same roster with the addition of Al-Farouq Aminu.

Normally, Aaron Gordon would be seen as a cornerstone of the franchise as they move forward and try to take the next step. However, their management decisions seem to suggest they may have other plans.

Golden State Warriors
Golden State Warriors /

Golden State Warriors

The Magic have long had a logjam in the frontcourt with Gordon, Vucevic, and recent top picks Jonathan Isaac and Mohamed Bamba. While Gordon was drafted as a small forward, he’s shown he’s best as a stretch-four.

Aminu seems like a light version of Gordon and only added to the frontcourt logjam. Furthermore, the Magic selected another power forward in the first round of this year’s draft (Chuma Okeke). Okeke will miss next season with an ACL-tear but is clearly in the team’s long-term plans.

The Magic have explored trading Gordon in the past and while they acquired Markelle Fultz last season to be a long-term solution at point guard, he’s far from a guarantee.

Gordon isn’t the smoothest fit on the Warriors, given he’s not an ideal floor-spacer and is probably best at Green’s position. However, it would allow the Warriors to play more small-ball lineups with Green at the five.

Gordon, like Covington, would have two years remaining on his contract, averaging about $17m a season. The Magic would have a number of options to pair salaries to match Russell’s.

Terrence Ross would be a fantastic bench scorer for the Warriors, Bamba could be an intriguing project, or even Fultz if he fails to fit in Orlando.

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