Purdy: Golden State Warriors G.M. Bob Myers keeps eyes on master plan
The Warriors are in the playoffs. Only a sourpuss would diminish that achievement.
But the Warriors are not going to win the 2013 NBA championship. Only a fool would believe that pipe dream.
Thus, for the next few weeks, followers of the team must confront a double-edged sword of giddiness and clearheaded reality. They should be glad to know that Bob Myers, the team's general manager, is waking up at 3 a.m. thinking about 2015 and 2016 as much as about 2013.
Not every night. But many nights.
"I keep my notebook by my bed," Myers said the other day at his office, "so that I can write down my thoughts and then go back to sleep. Otherwise I couldn't."
As an example, Myers recently bolted out of a deep slumber when he suddenly thought of a contract ramification that he'd possibly overlooked, something that might affect the Warriors' salary cap or roster flexibility two years from now.
Warriors' fans should rejoice and toss confetti at that story. Over the past 25 years, during those rare stretches when the Warriors might threaten to sustain a winning team, the threat would always end quickly. The front office strategy was grab-bag improvisational theater. The hope was to catch lightning in a bottle. But when lightning was occasionally caught, as with the 2007 "We Believe" team, it was never sustained. The elements were too volatile, too fragile or too obnoxious. The patch-and-fill roster changes would
result in a toxic mess.
It has become clear that such chaos will be avoided under the regime of owners Joe Lacob and Peter Guber -- and especially under Myers, who on April 24 will celebrate his anniversary as G.M. The current Warriors team is clearly a positive step on the path to true and legitimate NBA title contention. But in a recent sit-down session, Myers was refreshingly open about the team's ultimate master plan.
That plan begins with some general principles, which scouts are told to emphasize in their evaluation.
"Defense and rebounding are important," he said, which means you can look for the Warriors to shun those fill-up-the-basket guys who won't do the necessary work at the other end of the court.
And yet, that's merely the foundation groundwork. The master plan's centerpiece is this: to be prepared when a franchise changer becomes available. Myers estimates there might be 15 of those in the league at any one time. You obtain them through free agency, or through your pick in the draft, or through trading for someone else's selection.
"There's going to be a moment in time when you have a chance to acquire that player," Myers said. "Is your roster and your franchise situation set up for that one moment in time? What we cannot have happen is that when the moment comes, we're not ready."
Myers is certainly right about That One Player -- LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, et al -- being able to create a seismic franchise shift. Basketball is subject to That One Player variance factor more than any other sport because roster sizes are smaller and That One Player can have an immense impact.
Some might say the Warriors already have That One Player in the person of Stephen Curry. Meyer certainly hopes so, but he recognizes that Curry has more development to do. Regardless, the ideal scenario is for Curry and a few other core Warriors to stick around and be ready. Next season, the Warriors' flexibility will still be limited because of salary cap issues. But in the summer of 2014, the franchise should be in position to make a run at That One Player -- perhaps in a free agent sweepstakes.
"We want to have a seat at that table," Myers said. "It's sort of like the party's been going on, and we're not getting an invitation to the table. We want to be in position to not just get that invitation but be able to make our presentation at the party."
The Warriors' sales pitch won't be a slam dunk. Myers must somehow make the Bay Area as sexy a destination as Los Angeles or New York or Miami. But if the Warriors can keep reaching the playoffs ... and if the new San Francisco arena plans proceed ... and if Curry continues to ascend ...
The Warriors' first postseason adventure in six years will begin soon. Which is good. However, Myers will still be making 3 a.m. notepad scribbles about 2015. Which is even better.
