As expected, Andris Biedrins will opt in to the final year of his contract, waiving his early termination option, agent Bill Duffy confirmed to Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. The option will pay Biedrins a $9MM salary in the last season of his six-year, $54MM deal with the Warriors.
With Biedrins on the books for next season and Richard Jefferson expected to pick up his $11MM+ player option, the Warriors won't have much flexibility when it comes to re-signing Jarrett Jack or pursuing outside reinforcements. Last fall, we heard that the team was attempting to trade or buy out Biedrins, so perhaps those efforts will be revisited once the big man's contract becomes an expiring one.
Biedrins, 27, is coming off the worst season of his NBA career, having averaged 0.5 PPG, 2.9 RPG, and a 7.7 PER in 53 contests (9.3 MPG). There was some speculation that perhaps the Latvian center would exercise his ETO and opt out if it meant securing a multiyear deal at a lower annual salary (but a higher overall total). Based on his play in recent years, I would have been surprised if the Warriors were interested in locking him up for an extra season, even if it meant gaining some wiggle room in '13/14.