Monta Ellis admits Warriors wouldn't have won championship if they kept him
The Golden State Warriors' decision to split up their backcourt of Stephen Curry and Monta Ellis at the 2012 trade deadline was a difficult one, and left many fans greatly upset with the franchise -- so much so that they booed owner Joe Lacob throughout a halftime jersey retirement ceremony for Chris Mullin.
Golden State received Andrew Bogut who, despite being a devastating defensive force and a former No. 1 overall pick, wasn't exactly a household name. The main purpose of the move, though, was to free Curry from Ellis' ball-dominant ways, and to eventually unleash rookie sniper Klay Thompson. Ellis had claimed in 2009 that he and Curry could never co-exist in the same backcourt, which ironically finalized his departure from the team a couple years later.
Four years later, the Warriors are the defending champions and are chasing their second title behind the best-ever start through 50 games (46-4). Curry is the best player alive, and Thompson is arguably the game's best 2-guard. They're undoubtedly the best backcourt in basketball, and will likely go down as one of the best ever.
Ellis, meanwhile, has bounced from Milwaukee to Dallas to Indiana. He's shed some of his ball-stopping tendencies, but has seemingly maxed out as an overqualified sixth man and/or a fringe starter on a contender. He's nowhere near as good as Thompson, and is certainly in a different stratosphere in comparison to Curry.
While on SiriusXM NBA radio on Tuesday, Ellis admitted that the Warriors made the right move trading him, as they would've never won a championship had they kept him and Curry together:
“I think everything happens for a reason. I think if I was there, we probably wouldn’t have won a championship. That’s just how I am. Like I said, everything happens for a reason. Everybody said that when I made the comment about me and Steph wasn’t going to make it because we’re too small -- I didn’t tell that story. When they moved one of us, look what happened. So they moved me, and they win the championship. They have a bigger lineup with Klay [Thompson] at the 2, and then they’ve got Harrison Barnes to back him up. What I said, it was true. If me and him would still be there, I think it would've been hard for us to win there with us both being small in the backcourt.”
Ellis is spot on with his assesstment, though he left out one crucial part: Bogut is a better player than him, too, serving as the team's primary rim-protector and enforcer. His passing, finishing and rebounding skills are perpetually underrated as well.
In retrospect, the trade was a no-brainer, and changed the course of history for the Warriors, who have historically been one of the NBA's worst teams over the last few decades. They gave Curry the freedom he needed to blossom into a historic talent, they opened up a spot for Thompson to become an All-NBA player, and they upgraded their defense with a better and more important overall player. It's a win-win-win all around.
What's also of note is Ellis' humility in this situation. He admitted he was part of the problem in Golden State, even if a closer look at his comments suggests he's implying that the Warriors could've also moved Curry -- and kept him -- and still won a ring (he says they collectively were the problem, not he himself).
That, of course, isn't the case. Ellis was the problem, and the Warriors needed to move on. It appears that years after being traded from Golden State, Monta knows he doesn't have it all, and he's okay with that.
Listen to the audio of his comments below:
Jovan Buha covers the NBA for FOX Sports. Follow him on Twitter: @jovanbuha.