NBA Trade Rumors: Warriors Must Move Monta Ellis to Bring in New Identity
The Warriors are trying to change their M.O, and that should include trading Monta Ellis. Tim Kawakami of San Jose Mercury News said this of a potential Ellis' trade:
"The Warriors, as has been their stance for years, want a star in return for Ellis, who they consider a premium value because of his rare scoring ability and the dearth of scoring shooting guards in the league.
They don’t want to move Ellis just for cap relief. They are quite insistent on that, I’ve heard.
But they have not yet been offered anything close to what they consider equal value
"
Monta Ellis should be considered a star, anyone that has put up 19.6 points per game in their NBA career would generally be regarded as such. Something holds Ellis back from that distinction in the eyes of NBA GMs, thus the team is getting less-than-stellar offers.
Though he is a great scorer, his height is an issue at the shooting guard position. At 6'3" he's a little shorter than ideal, so teams view him as a tweener. However, some players' abilities supersede physical limitations, and Ellis is a prime example.
He also has excellent athleticism and that helps as well.
He could start for almost any team in the league and be a huge asset, especially on a contender, but with the Warriors, he is a part of a smallish backcourt with Stephen Curry.
The Warriors drafted 6'7" Klay Thompson this year, and he has shown some flashes, but he won't get the minutes he needs to develop playing behind Ellis. Right now he's playing 16 minutes per game, and he needs more to become a complete shooting guard.
He's a great fit next to Curry with his size and three-point shooting ability (he's currently connecting on 45 percent of his shots from three-point range). The Warriors would love to get him on the floor more, but they can't; Ellis is averaging 23 points per game, how can they limit his minutes?
Despite Ellis' high steals numbers year in year out, he's not known as a great traditional defender. He is averaging 1.5 steals per game, but he's a part of a team that is routinely among the league's worst in defense.
Golden State is 28th in points allowed this season. To change a team's defensive culture, the star or best player has to buy in. That hasn't happened with Ellis, thus it hasn't happened with the Warriors.
The Warriors are a run and gun squad, with little regard for defense; Ellis embodies that style most of all. He is solid, but he equates to a trap player for the Warriors. It's a very similar situation to Joe Johnson in Atlanta. You look at these two guys' stats and you say "wow, what a player!"
Then you look at the win/loss column, or the team's success in the postseason, and it doesn't add up.
Ellis through all his stellar play has never led the Warriors to a postseason. That is because he isn't a star, his stats just dress him up as one.
The stats substantiate the high salary, but he isn't good enough to raise the level of his teammates and carry a squad.
But, because of his scoring ability, the team is forced to lean on him, and they will continue to do so, as long as he's there.
To change the identity of this team, the Warriors must move the player that most resembles the style of play they are trying to move past.
That is Ellis, and they may just have to take less to get it done.
In this case, less is more.
