Golden State Paid Two Future Seconds to Secure Its Own G League Prospect
New Orleans selected Alen Smailagic at No. 39 in the 2019 draft and immediately sent his rights to Golden State for 2021 and 2023 second-round picks plus cash. The Warriors knew Smailagic unusually well because he had already spent the previous season with Santa Cruz in the G League, averaging 9.1 points in 47 games. That familiarity explains the move up, but it also meant Golden State paid multiple future assets for a player it had already evaluated closely.
Smailagic Never Justified the Price in the NBA
Smailagic played only 29 regular-season games over two Warriors seasons, averaging 3.0 points and 1.5 rebounds in 7.7 minutes. He appeared in 14 games as a rookie and 15 in 2020-21, starting once, before Golden State waived him in August 2021. The developmental bet therefore produced almost no rotation value. A D grade fits because the Warriors spent two second-rounders and cash to acquire a prospect who never became a dependable NBA contributor.
New Orleans Quickly Turned Both Picks Into Derrick Favors
The Pelicans did not wait to see where the two selections would land. On July 7, 2019, New Orleans sent the 2021 and 2023 second-round picks it had received from Golden State to Utah for Derrick Favors. Favors then started 49 of 51 games for the Pelicans in 2019-20, averaging 9.0 points and 9.8 rebounds while shooting 61.7 percent. That direct conversion gives the original Smailagic return a concrete basketball outcome instead of merely treating future picks as abstract value.
The Pick Chain Still Shows How Much Optionality New Orleans Received
The Warriors' 2021 second ultimately became the No. 47 slot, used on David Johnson, while the 2023 second became No. 49, used on Emoni Bates. New Orleans no longer owned either selection because both had gone to Utah in the Favors trade, and the picks moved again afterward. Those later players should not be credited directly to the Pelicans. What does belong in the grade is the fact that New Orleans turned the exact two assets acquired for Smailagic into a starting center for a full season.
Final Verdict
Pelicans Win — Golden State D, New Orleans B+. The Warriors targeted Alen Smailagic deliberately and paid two future second-round picks plus cash to move up for him, but he produced only 29 NBA games and 87 total points before being waived. New Orleans converted both incoming picks weeks later into Derrick Favors, who started 49 games and averaged 9.0 points and 9.8 rebounds during his Pelicans season. The later No. 47 and No. 49 draft outcomes belong to subsequent pick holders, not New Orleans, but the Favors conversion is enough to make the value gap clear.