Oakland’s Damian Lillard is available. Should the Warriors be interested in the 9-time All-Star?

OAKLAND – Damian Lillard has worn the No. 0 for his entire Hall of Fame career as an homage to Oakland, the city he still considers home.

Milwaukee released Lillard on Tuesday morning, which brings up a fascinating question.

Should the hometown Warriors seriously pursue the 34-year-old who will likely miss the entire upcoming 2025-26 season with an Achilles injury?

Multiple outlets have reported that the Bucks will pay Lillard $22 million per year for the next five seasons after stretching the rest of his two-year, $113 million contract, and that there is interest from around the league.

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This gives Lillard flexibility when deciding what he wants to do next.

“He receives all of his money guaranteed, and it provides him an opportunity to decide his next destination as an unrestricted free agent,” Lillard’s agent Aaron Goodwin told the Oregonian. “He gets a chance to rehab at home if he chooses to, and be with his family and his kids for the next year.”

So why shouldn’t the Warriors kick the tires on a two-year, veteran minimum contract for the best player to come out of the Town in decades?

After not making any signings during the first 24 hours of free agency, that would be a way for general manager Mike Dunleavy to make a splash regardless of what happens with restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga.

Lillard could spend next season rehabilitating with the team – or his family – while Milwaukee pays his salary, and then play for Golden State for almost nothing during the 2026-27 season.

If he is anywhere close to the offensive dynamo who has averaged 25.1 points and made 3.1 3-pointers per game for his career, Lillard playing for peanuts would be the biggest bargain in the league.

Oakland High’s senior Damian Lillard (white head band, far left) grabs the rebound after attempting to score. With the game down to the last ten seconds, Oakland High School scored to beat El Cerrito High School 65-63. (Alison Yin/Oakland Tribune)

He would also fit the Warriors’ current timeline, which sees Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green’s contracts all expire during the 2027 offseason.

So why wouldn’t the Warriors make that move, assuming Lillard is interested in coming back to the Bay Area?

Well, there is no guarantee Lillard, a small guard who has never been an overwhelming athlete, will be a high-quality player after coming back from one of the most devastating injuries in sports.

For every Kevin Durant, who comes back with no issues, there are many more Kobe Bryants, another 34-year-old superstar who tore his Achilles tendon and was a shell of himself for the rest of his career.

There is also the fact that the Warriors, with their decorated but pricy core trio, are facing a salary cap crunch. Even if Lillard counts for only a few million, every cent counts as the Warriors attempt to avoid salary cap penalties for spending too much?

And with Golden State’s stars aging and likely to load manage to some degree this regular season, that Lillard roster spot could go to a player who will help keep the veterans rested.

While those are reasonable arguments against bringing in Lillard, the tantalizingly high-end reward could outweigh the risk and whatever negatives for a team seeking a fifth title of the Curry era.