If Chris Paul starts for the Warriors during the 2023-24 season, who will be moved out of the starting unit and onto the bench?

Change was inevitable for the Golden State Warriors this offseason. Their run to the NBA Finals in 2022 and winning their fourth championship since 2015 seems like an eternity ago as we prepare for the 2023-24 season, especially with how this past year unfolded.

Losing in the Western Conference Finals to the Los Angeles Lakers, the first time Golden State lost in the postseason to a team in the West since 2014, the Warriors were forced to go back to the drawing board. Only this time, the front office was going to have to do so without long-time executive Bob Myers. After 12 years with the organization, Myers stepped down as the team’s head of basketball operations, leading to Mike Dunleavy Jr. taking over the title as general manager of the Warriors.

In Dunleavy’s first massive move as the head of the front office, he struck a deal with the Washingtоn Wizards to acquire Chris Paul at the cost of Jordan Poole and other future assets. Now, Paul joins the Warriors for his 19th NBA season after battling against them for so many years in the playoffs.

This was a shоcking move to many, especially given that the future Hall of Fаme point guard had been a fierce rival of the team for quite some time. Paul and Draymond Green have voiced their opinions on one another in the past and when he was with the Houston Rockets, the veteran guard was seen mocking the Warriors on multiple occasions. All of that is in the past now, especially since the chance to win a championship once again presents itself to this generation’s NBA dynasty.

Not only has Green talked about how he is looking forward to competing with Paul, but Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson have also detailed how the addition of Paul could positively impact their team.

“We’re lucky. That’s one of the greatest players ever. He’s Top 75. He’s elevated every franchise he ran the point for,” Thompson recently told Los Angeles Clippers star Paul George on his podcast. “And me as a shooter, I’m excited. I just know CP’s gonna put it right here [on his hands], on the seams… He’ll do anything to win. That’s the vibe we want.”

Paul’s arrival to the Warriors is going to spark some change. Not only is Poole no longer around as the team’s go-to scorer off the bench, but the way in which this team operates offensively will need to change. Instead of Curry always taking the ball up the floor, Paul will now be an added security blanket, allowing the league’s greatest shooter of all-time to run off screens and play off the ball. When the Warriors won their first championship with this core in 2015, Curry and Thompson held similar roles running around without the ball in their hands.

This entire organization is excited about the direction they are heading in, and the Warriors truly believe that they can win their fifth title in the last ten seasons this upcoming year. On the other side of things, the key question revolving around Paul and his role is whether or not he will be in the starting lineup.

The last couple of seasons, Golden State’s starting five has consisted of Curry, Thompson, Green, Andrew Wiggins and Kevon Looney. Out of all the five-man rotations in the league, this has been one of the most successful in terms of efficiency and overall rating, so why would the Warriors want to change this up?

It is not every day that you get a chance to have a historic talent and facilitator like Paul on the floor, which is why Golden State is thrilled to have him at the point guard position. With Paul rumored to be a starter for the team on opening night, the Warriors will have to move someone to the bench. It won’t be Steph and it would be if it was Draymond, so which player will move out of the starting lineup in just over a month?

Who will move to the bench?

When you look at the Warriors and all the success they have found through the years, it is hard to make the argument that either Steph, Klay or Draymond should be moved to the bench in favor of Paul. These three have been the faces of the Warriors’ dynasty and they are all going to be going to the Hall of Fаme one day.

The main reason why Dunleavy and the front office decided to part ways with Poole in favor of Paul this offseason was to capitalize on the back-end of their core’s respective careers. It would make no sense for Paul to inherit one of their starting spots.

This leaves Wiggins and Looney as the two players who could be moved to the bench unit in favor of the veteran guard. Size has always been a problem for Golden State and Looney has been the backbone of their success. His rebounding and versatile defending at the center position has helped this organization win games time and time again.

As for Wiggins, he has quietly proven to be one of the better two-way wings in the league and the Warriors would not have won their championship in 2022 without his contributions on both ends of the floor. Not to mention, the team struggled without him on the floor this past season.

The idea of playing “small” and not having a true center on the floor is something the Warriors first experimented with years ago. They have since continued to implement new rotations with Green as their center. It would not be shоcking if head coach Steve Kerr and his staff decide to go a similar route to begin the 2023-24 season, having Green at center and moving everyone down a spot so Paul can be the team’s starting “point guard.”

Curry and Thompson would still be on the floor together, Green would still be able to help facilitate the offense, and Wiggins would continue to make his presence felt as this team’s lead secondary option. A starting lineup with these four players and Paul definitely presents upside for Curry and Thompson, but at what cost?

The Warriors would be dominated by bigger, stronger teams on the interior and they would be taking Looney, a player who has played in all 82 regular season games the last two seasons, out of the starting lineup. This would surely be a rιsk by Golden State, but if they want Paul in the starting lineup, this seems to be the most reasonable approach.