4 Bruce Brown trades for Raptors to flip veteran guard to a contender
Trade No. 2: Bruce Brown joins a dying dynasty
The Golden State Warriors are in a death spiral, trying desperately to find a lifeline to keep them from crashing before the end of Stephen Curry's prime. They very nearly pulled off a major move in the last few days to bring in Paul George, but now that ship has sailed and in the process Klay Thompson appears to be leaving the team too.
Veteran point guard Chris Paul has a contract that is non-guaranteed through today, and the Warriors have been hoping to use him as matching salary in a trade. Paul George is no longer on the table, and the timer is ticking on being able to trade Paul before they're locked into his salary for the year.
Enter Bruce Brown, a player who should pair nicely with Stephen Curry as a reliable veteran but who can also keep alive that matching salary slot for a subsequent trade later this year. The Warriors could also use a backup point guard if they are cutting ties with Chris Paul.
Here's a trade that the Raptors could offer:
Bruce Brown Davion to GSW
For the Warriors they get Brown, a player who can help now and be traded later, and Davion Mitchell provides an interesting dart throw as a backup point guard who can provide a defensive edge to bench units. The deal costs them Moses Moody and a future second-round pick, but keeps open possibilities to make a bigger splash at the trade deadline.
For Toronto, they would only need to guarantee a portion of Paul's salary, perhaps as low as $18 million, and would presumably waive him after the deal to allow him to sign with a contender and keep them from paying the full $30 million. Moody is a buy-low wing we have already discussed being a strong option for the Raptors, and the 2026 second from Atlanta could easily be in the Top 5 of that draft.
There are a few CBA rules that would need to be threaded for this trade -- perhaps it's looped in as a three-team deal with the Kings to route Mitchell, or expanded for the Warriors to reroute Brown right away if they find a landing spot quickly -- but it would give the Raptors a young two-way wing and a pick in exchange for Brown.