The Golden State Warriors’ reunion with Gary Payton II, one of the NBA trade deadline sweet spots, may no longer go as planned.
Payton’s failed medical screening seriously jeopardized a four-team deal that the Warriors could acquire Payton from the Portland Trail Blazers. Shams Charania from Athletic. The Warriors doctors reportedly believe Payton could miss up to three months due to a torso injury.
The Payton acquisition was the end result of a series of moves Thursday, when the Warriors traded former second overall pick James Wiseman to the Detroit Pistons, who sent young guard Saddiq Bey to the Atlanta Hawks while the Hawks dealt a whopping five hits in the second round. chosen by the Warriors.
The Warriors, who also had to take forward Kevin Knox from the Pistons, then agreed to a deal that sent Knox and all five second-rounders to Portland for Payton.
According to Charania, it was all tied into a four-team deal. The Warriors now have until Saturday to finalize the deal or drop it.
The Blazers reportedly did not tell the Warriors about Gary Payton II’s underlying concerns.
Payton left the Warriors last offseason after a winning season and signed a three-year, $26.1 million contract with the Blazers. The Warriors, currently ranked 28-27, have clearly overlooked an outstanding half-season defensive performance since then.
A core injury is nothing new for the 30-year-old Payton, as he had surgery in that area during the off-season and didn’t make his Blazers debut until Jan. 2. Since then, he has averaged 4.1 points in 17 minutes. 15 games for Portland.
However, Charania reveals that Peyton was receiving painkillers from Toradol as the Blazers’ training staff pushed him to play through the pain, which the Warriors weren’t told during the negotiation process. If this is true, the Warriors may want to wash their hands of the deal.
Blazers general manager Joe Cronin spoke to reporters shortly after the medical was revealed. Per KOIN News Brenna Greenhe stated that he had become aware of the issue only five minutes prior and delayed comment.
Source: sports.yahoo.com
