Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry (30) gestures as he walks off the floor after their win against the Sacramento Kings in an NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Tuesday, April 7, 2026. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry (30) gestures as he walks off the floor after their win against the Sacramento Kings in an NBA game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., Tuesday, April 7, 2026. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Lottery luck did not go the Warriors’ way on Sunday afternoon.
Golden State (37-45) earned the No. 11 selection in the NBA Draft after the ping pong balls settled at the draft lottery in Chicago. The Warriors had just a 9.4% chance of earning a Top 4 pick, 77.6% odds of remaining at No. 11, and a 13% shot at falling below that.
Because of tiebreakers and a convoluted set of rules, the Warriors were guaranteed not to land a pick between No. 5 and No. 10 the day after Steve Kerr agreed to a contract to continue coaching the Warriors.
The draft will take place on June 23 and 24.
It might not be a top-five pick, but that does not mean it has no value. The 2026 draft is considered one of the deepest in recent memory, and No. X is still high enough to find a player that could be a Day 1 starter.
Armed with such a valuable pick in a loaded draft, trading it for immediate help is an option.
But if general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. and the front office decide to keep the pick as a building block for the post-Steph Curry era, he should have plenty of high-level prospects to pick from.
These include:
**Brayden Burries, 6-foot-4, Arizona:**A prototypical combo guard who is big enough to defend both backcourt spots. Not the most explosive athlete, but a smooth scorer who can get buckets at all three levels.
**Mikel Brown, 6-5, Louisville:**A tall point guard with excellent athleticism and a developing scoring game. Battled back injuries in college, but has a high ceiling if he can stay healthy and develop consistency on his jump shot.
Yaxel Lendeborg, 6-11, Michigan: The star of Michigan’s national championship-winning team, should be pro-ready at 24 years old. He made 37% of his 3-pointers, is a noted passer and should immediately be able to contribute as a rotation big at the NBA level.
**Karim López, 6-8, New Zealand:**The top international prospect, and expected to be the first-ever Mexican-born player to be picked in the first round. Averaged 11.9 points per game as an 18-year-old playing abroad in the Australian league, and projects to be a well-rounded wing in the NBA.
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