The Golden State Warriors have spent much of the offseason chasing blockbuster moves. And respectfully, they’ve failed badly. Now, one of their most important decisions has turned into keeping a familiar face in the building for a third consecutive offseason.

“According to the NBA’s publicly available transactions log, Golden State has completed the anticipated re-signing of De’Anthony Melton,” NBA insider Marc Stein tweeted.

This ended weeks of speculation surrounding Melton’s return. ESPN insider Shams Charania previously reported that the defensive-minded guard agreed to rejoin the Warriors on a two-year contract worth $11 million with a player option, but the signing wasn’t finalized on paper.

Melton’s return gives head coach Steve Kerr another versatile two-way guard who is capable of defending multiple positions while taking the burden off Curry.

Although injuries interrupted his previous stint with the franchise, the organization was impressed with what they saw before his season-ending ACL injury. In his return season, he averaged 12.3 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game, while shooting 40.7% from the field and 29.4% from beyond the arc.

The timing of Melton’s signing showcases a pattern. After missing out on LeBron James, Golden State appears focused on preserving its core. The organization brought back Draymond Green, aiming to keep its veteran leadership intact.

In recent days, the news has largely been about the failure to get LeBron, but the Warriors subsequently secured Green for the same money he opted out of ($27.7 million), followed by Melton.

However, that isn’t the end of their acquisition list just yet.

The Warriors, according to Shams Charania, have agreed to re-sign Gary Payton II to a one-year, $3.9 million veteran minimum contract. Payton remains one of Golden State’s best perimeter defenders. He can guard point guards, wings, and even some bigger forwards despite standing 6-foot-2, thanks to his athleticism.

He was a key member of Golden State’s 2022 championship team and has spent six of the past seven seasons with the organization. Last season, he averaged 7.5 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.7 assists, while shooting 58.3% from the field.

Payton also shares a good relationship with Curry and Jimmy Butler, which will help bring that locker room together after a disappointing season.

Back in May, Warriors General Manager Mike Dunleavy addressed a worried fanbase and admitted that their shortcomings on the court aren’t due to a lack of talent, but due to injuries at the wrong time.

That statement hasn’t particularly aged well because they’ve made conscious strides to bring back the same unit they struggled with. Not to mention the huge $40 million two-year deal for Kristaps Porzingis.

It is hard to tell whether this is genuine desperation or an actual plan.

At the February deadline, the Warriors had the chance to trade for Jaylen Brown but reportedly passed on it. According to Logan Murdock of The Ringer, Golden State “couldn’t build an organizational consensus that Brown would be the right player to carry the Warriors beyond the Curry era.”

Months later, Dunleavy and Co. went on to miss out on Anthony Davis, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and (infamously) LeBron James.

“That’s why you don’t envision anything until it happens,” Curry said after hearing about James joining Philly. “There’s a lot of moving parts.”

It was around that time when Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic shared that Curry is “probably a little tired of star chasing.”

Despite repeated offseason failures, the sharpshooter has maintained a positive outlook about the Bay Area team in front of fans. A month ago, he continued doing so, but dropped a little vague hint.

“The whole calculus of everything changes,” Curry said. “How do you get through their [Butler and Moody injuries] absence and still stay at a certain level? And then, how that goes into this year. It’s the same deal. So, I’m a realist on that.”

Realist…

Many critics, most recently, Kendrick Perkins, have asked Curry to be realistic and plan his exit strategy. The 38-year-old is entering the final season of his contract. Importantly, he is eligible to sign a $137 million extension by the end of August. But there’s no official talk around that yet.

NBA insider Brian Windhorst recently went against the inevitable and suggested the Warriors shouldn’t offer Curry anything this offseason.

“I submit [that] the Warriors should say, ‘Don’t sign a contract extension, let yourself become a free agent next summer,” Windhorst said on Get Up. “We’ll do a one-year deal with Draymond Green. Let’s clear $90 million in cap space and see what we can do in the market next year.’”

By going down this route, Golden State risks losing Curry, Butler, and Green in the same offseason. Even though that sounds bizarre for now, there might be an actual section of a whiteboard in the Warriors’ front office that accounts for it.

A week ago, Tim Kawakami of the San Francisco Standard mentioned that Governor Joe Lacob intends to turn the Warriors into a title contender once Curry’s done. In short, he is spending ample time planning for the post-Curry era. And that could come as soon as the season after next.

Although Curry likely won’t go down the route of not signing an extension (if offered one) and create pressure on the franchise that turned him into who he is, there is a world in which Kerr gets a complete new slate for the 2027-28 season.

There are more questions than answers now.