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Warriors' reunion with Gary Payton II reportedly in jeopardy after Blazers guard fails physical

The Golden State Warriors' reunion with Gary Payton II, one of the feel-good moves of the NBA trade deadline, might no longer be happening as planned.

A failed physical by Payton has placed the four-team deal that would've had the Warriors acquire Payton from the Portland Trail Blazers in serious jeopardy, according to The Athletic's Shams Charania. The Warriors' doctors reportedly believe Payton could miss up to three months due to a core injury.

The Payton acquisition was the end result of a series of moves Thursday in which the Warriors traded former second overall pick James Wiseman to the Detroit Pistons, who sent young guard Saddiq Bey to the Atlanta Hawks, while the Hawks dealt a whopping five second-round picks to the Warriors.

The Warriors, who were also to receive forward Kevin Knox from the Pistons, then agreed to a deal that sent Knox and all five second-rounders to Portland for Payton.

The whole thing was tied together into a four-team deal, per Charania. Now the Warriors have until Saturday to go through with the deal or drop the whole thing.

Blazers reportedly didn't tell Warriors about Gary Payton II's core issues

Payton left the Warriors last offseason after a championship-winning breakout season and signed a three-year, $26.1 million deal with the Blazers. The Warriors, currently sitting at 28-27, have clearly missed the defensive standout in the half-season since.

A core muscle injury isn't new for the 30-year-old Payton, as he underwent surgery on the area in the offseason and didn't make his Blazers debut until Jan. 2. He has since averaged 4.1 points in 17.0 minutes across 15 games for Portland.

However, Charania reports that Payton had been receiving painkilling Toradol shots as the Blazers' training staff pushed him to play through the pain, something the Warriors were not told during the negotiation process. If true, the Warriors might want to wash their hands of the deal.

Blazers general manager Joe Cronin spoke with reporters shortly after news of the physical broke. Per KOIN News' Brenna Greene, he claimed to have learned of the issue only five minutes prior and deferred comment.

The very complicated Gary Payton II-James Wiseman trade might've just become even more complicated. (Photo by Soobum Im/Getty Images)
The very complicated Gary Payton II-James Wiseman trade might've just become even more complicated. (Photo by Soobum Im/Getty Images)