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Pat Spencer #61 of the Golden State Warriors shoots a basket against Nic Claxton #33 of the Brooklyn Nets during the first half at Barclays Center on December 29, 2025 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.
As the Golden State Warriors scour the league for frontcourt upgrades ahead of the Feb. 5 NBA trade deadline, Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton remains on their reported wishlist.
According Hoops Hype’s Michael Scotto, the Warriors and Indiana Pacers are the two most aggressive teams in pursuit of a potential Nic Claxton trade.
“The Golden State Warriors are looking at various center options across the league, but there are other teams, too, who are looking at Nic,” Scotto reported on Thursday.
“This is a guy who anchored the No. 1 defense in December,” Scotto said of Claxton. “He can switch on pick-and-rolls and pick-and-pops, and he’s a good shot-blocker. The Nets view him as part of their future, but he’s certainly got interest around the league.”
Warriors Trade Target: Nic Claxton
Other insiders such as Chris Haynes and ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel have also reported on the Warriors’ trade interest in Claxton, who has two full seasons remaining on the four-year, $97M extension he signed with the Nets in 2024.
Given Claxton’s age, 26, and cap-friendly long-term contract, the Warriors can’t be blamed for pursuing one of the best rim protectors in the league.
As Scotto noted, Claxton has been key to the Nets’ elite defense since Dec. 1. During this timeframe, Brooklyn owns the fifth-best defensive rating in the league (110.9), behind only the Oklahoma City Thunder, Detroit Pistons, San Antonio Spurs and Phoenix Suns. In fact, the Nets ranked No. 1 in defense in December, when they held opponents to a meager 105.4 points per 100 possessions while winning seven of their 11 games.
Warriors Need Frontcourt Help
Besides Claxton, the Warriors have reportedly identified Dallas Mavericks’ Daniel Gafford and Portland Trail Blazers‘ Robert Williams as athletic, rim-running bigs they plan to pursue ahead of the NBA trade deadline.
The aging Warriors could definitely use athletic frontcourt players. Steve Kerr’s team ranks 15th in the league in opponent paint points allowed (50.8), 22nd in rebounds per game (43.2) and 21st in blocked shots (4.1). On the other end, they rank dead-last in points in the paint, amassing only 42.8 points per game on the interior, nearly 12 fewer points than their conference rivals Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets.
Draymond Green, who has been forced to play a lot of center, has reportedly been unhappy with his role all season, per Andscape’s Marc J. Spears.
Chris Haynes reiterated last month that Golden State is in the market to shore up its frontcourt ahead of the NBA trade deadline.
“The Warriors are buyers. I was told they are looking for size and athleticism,” Haynes told the “NBA on Prime” telecast. “Rebounding and block shots, they’re in the bottom half of the league. And points in the paint, they are dead last. So they’re looking for an athletic center.”
“I was told they are really serious,” Haynes added. “They are trying to do everything they can to get this team back to a championship-contender level.”
Nic Claxton is averaging a career-high 13.1 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.4 blocks on 58% shooting in his seventh season with the Nets.
Sai Mohan covers the NBA for Heavy.com. Based in Portugal, Sai is a seasoned sports writer with nearly two decades of publishing experience, including bylines at Yardbarker, FanSided’s Hoops Habit, International Business Times, Hindustan Times and more. More about Sai Mohan
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