Money is a huge trade motivator in the NBA. The Warriors can be over $50M the luxury tax line and have a tax bill up to around $300M if they manage to keep Draymond, Poole and Wiggins in the 2023 free agency but it would also be an extreme challenge for the team to stay competitive without keeping the same core of players they currently have. They will still pay a huge amount of tax, although not that much, if they keep 2 of the 3 but may significantly decrease their title chances by doing so, defeating the purpose of going over the tax line. It should be an all-in decision by the Warriors at the end of the day, as they are still on everybody's title contenders list for as long as their core can sustain its success, unless they convince themselves that they're contented and entertain the idea of fully rebuilding just to escape the tax.

Keeping Draymond, Poole and Wiggins will cement themselves as a high-paying tax team for years to come but they could still try as much as they can to cheap out on every player they have outside their 5 best (Curry, Draymond, Poole, Wiggins, Thompson) without sacrificing current success. Looney is secured with the team for three more years, was a significant part of their championship success last season, and is someone who would get starting minutes for at least the start of the season. Odds are that he won't demand double the amount he is earning per year now once his new contract expires and that they could still keep him on the team for more years once he hits free agency or becomes eligible for an extension the season before. Kuminga and Moody, although could require a big paycheck once they enter restricted free agency, still have three years on their rookie contracts for the front office to decide on them, and are players that give them flexibility the team would want as early pieces they can build with for their future. They can also provide good defense and scoring punch off-the-bench on this team that could be needed at parts of the season and postseason. Donte DiVincenzo is replaceable talent with not as much upside to be elite in a particular skillset like Kuminga and Moody. He is someone that they got for nothing and is only expected to elevate their floor for the current season so having him walk for nothing if he overplays his contract should be fine. One player they have who stands out is James Wiseman, who could overplay and demand a price in 2 years that could hurt their pockets, possibly losing high value talent for nothing if a team with cap space would be willing to overpay for his upside, or being forced to take his contract just to trade him, or one of their 4 best players next to Curry, for bad value due to teams having leverage with Golden State being desperate to lower their tax bill. They have proven they can win without Wiseman last season, and that they still plan to play Looney over him to start the season for injury precautions or the fit with the starters. Wiseman being a restricted free agent in 2024 and having high chances of leaving for nothing if his price on the market heavily changes could force the team to find fitting young talent on the team to replace the impact they need from him on a cheaper and longer contract.

The Warriors could be interested in replacing him for a center on a rookie contract to get away with 2 years of great center play for way cheaper than the amount Wiseman could warrant soon, or a haul of up to 2 low-end first-round picks. Jalen Duren feels like the best one available on the market, and doing this could end up the best case for Golden State. Duren is already one of the most athletic centers in the league. He can still be a paint protector they've never yet had since their dynasty started just like Wiseman. He's a good rebounder, a great lob threat, a great rim runner and is someone who can pass out of the short roll. He's a seamless fit on the roster, someone who can definitely raise their floor and can still be their center for years to come. They lose a lot of Wiseman's offensive upside with his post play and shooting upside but that is something that skill also won't be maximized if the Warriors plan to stay competitive for the next 4 years. They give up a first-round pick because there is generally less leverage in the NBA for cap-saving teams as based on a lot of recent trades, the protections are debatable but nobody truly knows what it should be, but if there's a legit chance they lose him for nothing then the pick could even be unprotected.

Based on hoopshype's luxury tax penalty amounts, my rough estimate is that the Warriors save around $42M in 2022-23, $55M in 2023-24, $110M in 2024-25, $115M in 2025-26 which is $322M in total (essentially worth more than Steph's extension lol) from salary and tax combined if they do this move, all with still being able to contend sooner and not heavily degrading their young core, which could warrant enough motivation to give a lightly-protected first-round pick with the trade. (estimates are all assuming they re-sign Draymond in 2023 for $32M/yr, Wiggins in 2023 for $28M/yr, Poole in 2023 for $25M/yr and Klay in 2024 for $25M/yr; Wiseman is worth $16M a year on his new extension, could also be way more than that; With a $161M luxury tax line in 2023, $170M tax line in 2024 and $180M tax line in 2025)

Detroit needs to space the floor for Cade and Ivey. Wiseman checks the boxes for someone who can be a good, high-volume three-point shooter and is someone who has more offensive upside than Duren.

The trade requires the Pistons to throw $2.2M more out, hence they send their veteran expiring contract Cory Joseph to the Raptors who are in need of more guard depth for Svi Mykhailiuk who is a decent shooter the Pistons may be interested in bringing back but not someone who can be on the Raptors' rotation.

Thoughts on this?