Stephen Curry has made his intentions clear for years: He wants to retire with the Golden State Warriors.
That hasn’t stopped the outside speculation.
As the Warriors enter another season with an aging core and mounting questions about whether another championship run is realistic, NBA analyst Zach Lowe floated a blockbuster hypothetical that would fundamentally alter the franchise’s future.
On his Zach Lowe Show podcast this week, Lowe proposed a framework that would send Curry to the Orlando Magic in exchange for Franz Wagner, Jalen Suggs and draft compensation, arguing it is the type of package Golden State would need to consider if it ever pivots toward a full-scale rebuild.
The proposal comes as the Warriors find themselves in an increasingly precarious position.
Golden State missed out on LeBron James this offseason, declined Boston’s steep asking price for Jaylen Brown and never seriously pursued Anthony Davis after determining the cost outweighed the potential reward. Meanwhile, Curry is entering his age-39 season, and the organization’s championship window appears narrower than at any point since its dynasty began.
Warriors Still Believe Stephen Curry Will Finish Career in Golden State
Despite the growing debate outside the organization, there has been little indication Curry or the Warriors are contemplating a separation.
Speaking Tuesday on 95.7 The Game, The San Francisco Standard’s Danny Emerman said everything he has heard continues to point in one direction.
“We could only go by what’s available, the information available to us,” Emerman said. “The information available to us in terms of what Steph has said publicly, what people around him have said privately, is that he wants to finish his career as a Warrior. So, I don’t see that changing.”
Emerman acknowledged circumstances can always evolve but added that both sides remain aligned.
“It’s possible that things can change and things can go really sideways and maybe he has a change of heart, but no, the Warriors want him to finish as a Warrior. He wants to finish here.”
That stance has remained remarkably consistent even as Golden State’s roster has undergone dramatic change.
Jimmy Butler is recovering from a torn ACL, while Moses Moody is expected to miss significant time after suffering a torn left patellar tendon. Veteran centers Kristaps Porziņģis and Al Horford also enter the season with durability concerns after combining for just 60 games last year, making workload management a near certainty.
Those realities have fueled questions about whether Golden State still possesses a legitimate championship ceiling around Curry.
Zach Lowe’s Proposal Revisits Painful Joe Lacob’s Draft Decision
GettyStephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors drives against Franz Wagner of the Orlando Magic in the second half at Kia Center on February 27, 2025 in Orlando, Florida.
Lowe’s hypothetical would send Curry and Moody to Orlando in exchange for Wagner, Suggs and future draft assets.
“Send Franz Wagner back to Golden State where he belongs,” Lowe said. “Suggs, Wagner and pick-slash-picks for Stephen and Moses Moody. It works almost exactly in the trade machine.”
Whether Golden State would ever entertain such a conversation is another matter.
The proposal also reopens one of the organization’s biggest “what ifs.”
According to ESPN’s Anthony Slater, Wagner was strongly supported by members of Golden State’s coaching staff before the 2021 NBA Draft. While Steve Kerr was with Team USA preparing for the Tokyo Olympics, several coaches who attended Wagner’s pre-draft workout believed the versatile German forward was an ideal fit in Kerr’s motion offense.
Instead, owner Joe Lacob championed Jonathan Kuminga, whom the Warriors selected with the No. 7 overall pick one spot before Orlando drafted Wagner.
Five years later, Kuminga is still without a team deep into free agency while Wagner has developed into one of the NBA’s premier young forwards, averaging at least 20 points in each of the past three seasons.
Even so, Lowe’s proposal remains just that — a thought experiment.
Unless Curry dramatically changes his long-held desire to retire in the Bay Area, the Warriors appear far more focused on maximizing what remains of his championship window than beginning life without the greatest player in franchise history.
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