Will Trevor Ariza pull a Kevin Durant? Speaking with Tim Kawakami of The Athletic during an episode of The TK Show, Chris Haynes of ESPN (h/t Scott Polacek of Bleacher Report) said that current Houston Rockets swingman Trevor Ariza could be looking to take a pay cut in order to join the Golden State Warriors in the offseason.
ESPN.com’s Chris Haynes appeared on the TK Show with Tim Kawakami of The Athletic and discussed players who could look to take a pay cut to play alongside Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant on the Warriors in 2018-19 and mentioned Ariza as “a name that I’m hearing.”
This rumor comes just a little less than two weeks after the Rockets were eliminated by the Golden State Warriors in a hard-fought Western Conference semifinals series, thus understandably drawing comparison with Durant’s decision to jump ship and head towards the Bay Area following a heart-breaking WCF loss to the Warriors in 2016 as part of the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Ariza is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer. In 67 games back in the regular season, the 32-year-old veteran averaged 11.7 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.6 assists. Known for his ability to play solid perimeter defense and the ability to knock down 3-pointers, Ariza fit well with Mike D’Antoni’s system and was a key part of the Rockets’ supporting cast in 2017-18.
As mentioned by Haynes, Ariza is likely going to need to accept a step down in salary for him to join the Warriors. If Golden State managed to get Ariza, it’ll be a tremendous boost to their small forward position, as he’ll add depth behind Kevin Durant and good two-way play for an already loaded Warriors unit.
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