A few Warriors players have asked general manager Bob Myers to find a spot for Marquese Chriss on the roster, according to Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic. Chriss made an immediate impact Saturday in Golden State’s first preseason game with eight points, six rebounds and four assists in 13 minutes. He also fills a need for a team that’s dealing with injuries to big men Kevon Looney and Willie Cauley-Stein.
But keeping Chriss won’t be easy. The Warriors are severely limited because of a hard cap that came along with the sign-and-trade for D’Angelo Russell. To hold onto Chriss, they will have to either trade one of their 13 guaranteed salaries or waive Alfonzo McKinnie, whose $1,588,231 contract is non-guaranteed. A two-way deal is theoretically possible, but Chriss didn’t sign an Exhibit 10 contract, so he’d have to clear waivers for that to happen.
“I’ve heard good things, positive things from the coaches,” Chriss said. “I’m just trying to stay open-minded and keep being coached. Whether or not it works out here, I was able to come here and learn some things that I would be able to take other places. I think at the end of the day, my goal was to show them that this was where I should be and put the pressure on them.”
There’s more Warriors news to pass along:
- McKinnie is engaged in a three-way competition for the starting small forward slot, notes Monte Poole of NBC Bay Area. He’s battling Alec Burks and Glenn Robinson III, who both signed as free agents over the summer. Poole suggests that McKinnie has the edge because of his experience with the team, but he may have slipped with a poor first preseason game in which he made just one of four 3-pointers and finished at minus-23.
- Anthony Slater of The Athletic takes an in-depth look at the hard cap and the effects it will have on the Warriors throughout the season. The team is already within $407,257 of the $138,928,000 figure, which means they can’t add a 15th player to the roster until March 3, when a pro-rated minimum salary will become small enough to fit. Slater notes that once that date arrives, Golden State could reach out to Andrew Bogut again when his Australian season is complete.
- Stephen Curry told reporters today that he hasn’t determined how the NBA’s standoff with China will affect his Under Armour tours of the nation going forward, tweets Logan Murdock of NBC Sports.
The Warriors must be desperate for depth if Marquese Chriss has even the slightest chance of making the team. He’s garbage.
Not garbage, but he’s just not very good.
I’d rather keep McKinnie. He’s been good in a reserve roll. I think he struggled a little bit last year but he can shoot from behind the arc and he’s athletic and good off the dribble.
McKinnie just isn’t any good. Chriss has suddenly hit his stride and looks good with Steph. Easy choice here.
Has no 22 year old ever shown dramatic sudden improvement in a new situation?
Yes, but NBA players should also look like they know how play basketball.
Chriss has 8 assists in 39 minutes, Kerr is a really good coach, and he’s had nothing but really terrible coaches his whole life. It’s not out of the realm of possibility that he’s never been used correctly before, and now Kerr found a way for him to contribute.
Just like at the three guys fighting for SF. That tells you the talent level of the team beyond a couple guys.
Kind of left out Criss’s 6 fouls in 14 minutes. But 3 of his assists went to Jacob Evans, who needs to get going, so if that keeps up, would be a reason to trade someone to keep him… except Evans might be the one to go!