Golden State Warriors Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Warriors Notes: Randle, Curry, Mulder, Toscano-Anderson

March 11th, 2020 at 5:01pm CST by Jovan Alford

This season has been one to forget for the Warriors, as they have a record of 15-50 and remain on track for a top-five pick in this summer’s NBA Draft. That being said, despite all the losses, Golden State’s front office has been able to identify different players who could be key contributors in the future.

Players such as Marquese Chriss, Damion Lee, Ky Bowman, and Mychal Mulder are examples of Golden State finding diamonds in the rough this season, opines Anthony Slater of The Athletic.

The Warriors signed Mulder to a multi-year minimum, non-guaranteed deal on Tuesday, making him the latest player to get a commitment beyond this season from the team. John Hollinger of The Athletic reported that Golden State used a portion of its mid-level exception to sign the former University of Kentucky guard.

In seven games this season with the Warriors, Mulder is averaging 11 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 29.1 minutes per game.

Here’s more news out of San Francisco:

Juan Toscano-Anderson was seen in a walking boot and is scheduled to have an MRI on his ankle, according to ESPN’s Nick Friedell. Head coach Steve Kerr doesn’t expect the forward to join Golden State on its upcoming road trip.
In other Warriors injury news, superstar guard Stephen Curry is on track to play on Thursday night against the Nets, per Slater. Curry has been out with the seasonal flu. He made his return to his basketball court last Thursday after missing time with a fractured hand.
Steve Berman of The Athletic detailed point guard Chasson Randle‘s journey from the Chinese Basketball Association to receiving a 10-day contract with Golden State. Randle was one of the many American players in the CBA that were sent home over the Lunar New Year in January. Randle’s 10-day contract is set to expire on Thursday.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 3/11/20

March 11th, 2020 at 5:00pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Here are today’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

The Trail Blazers assigned Jusuf Nurkic to the G League, per the team. Portland doesn’t have a G League team, so Nurkic reported to the Santa Cruz Warriors.
The Raptors assigned Stanley Johnson to the Raptors 905 for today’s game, according to the team’s Twitter feed. Johnson, who is the former No. 8 overall pick, signed with the team this past offseason.
There were also a handful of other assignments today, per the G League’s official log. They are as follows:
- Nuggets assign Keita Bates-Diop (to Windy City Bulls).
- Sixers assign Norvel Pelle (recalled).
- Spurs assign Luka Samanic.
- Wizards assign Anzejs Pasecniks (recalled), Gary Payton II (recalled), and Admiral Schofield.

Coronavirus Updates: Warriors, Cavs, Wizards, Next Steps

March 11th, 2020 at 4:07pm CST by Luke Adams

As we relayed earlier today, the Warriors‘ Thursday contest vs. Brooklyn is on track to become the first NBA game played without fans in attendance as a result of the coronavirus epidemic.

Discussing the situation today with reporters, Warriors president and COO Rick Welts acknowledged that it will be a costly adjustment for the franchise. As Nick Friedell of ESPN tweets, Welts said not playing Thursday’s game will result in a “multi-million dollar loss” for the Warriors, adding that the number would increase to the “tens of millions” if the team continues to play behind closed doors following its road trip.

Although the lost revenue for one Warriors game won’t have a massive impact on the basketball related income (BRI) for the NBA as a whole, it will become a more significant issue if more teams are forced to play games without fans, which seems likely.

Welts and GM Bob Myers confirmed today that the league’s BRI will be affected and that it could have an impact on the salary cap going forward, though it remains to be seen to what degree that impact will be felt (video link via Anthony Slater of The Athletic). Between this situation and the NBA’s controversy with China, the cap may not increase next season by nearly as much as initially expected.

Here are more news items and notes related to the coronavirus outbreak:

The NBA has considered the possibility of pushing back its calendar in response to the coronavirus crisis, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic. Sources tell Amick that the NBA has been asking teams to provide its arena schedule through July. Currently, the season is expected to end no later than June 21 (if the Finals go seven games).
The NBA and its players’ union spoke on Wednesday to discuss ways to continue the season without cancelling games, per ESPN’s Zach Lowe and Adrian Wojnarowski. It appears increasingly likely that teams around the league will be required to play in empty arenas, with the NBA bracing for losses “in the hundreds of millions of dollars,” sources tell ESPN.
After initially recommending against mass gatherings, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said today that the state intends to issue an order saying that no spectators will be allowed at major sporting events, tweets Aaron Portzline of The Athletic. That will affect the Cavaliers, though they’re not scheduled to return home until March 24.
After the D.C. Department of Health advised against holding non-essential gatherings of 1,000+ people, the Wizards‘ ownership group issued a statement saying that they plan to move forward with allowing fans to attend home games for now. So far, teams have been reluctant to do anything drastic unless they’re faced with a full-fledged ban from local government or an edict from the league.
Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link) hears that at least half of the NBA’s teams have pulled their advance scouts off the road due to coronavirus concerns.
In case you missed it, the NCAA announced this afternoon that this year’s men’s and women’s tournaments will be closed to fans.

Warriors’ Thursday Game Will Be Closed To Fans

March 11th, 2020 at 1:17pm CST by Luke Adams

1:17pm: The Warriors have confirmed that Thursday’s game against the Nets will be played without fans, announcing in a press release that fans with tickets will receive refunds. The club has also cancelled, postponed, or relocated all other Chase Center events through March 21, including a Post Malone concert and a Santa Cruz Warriors game.

12:49pm: In the wake of news that the City of San Francisco has banned public gatherings of more than 1,000 people, the Warriors will be directed to close Thursday’s home game vs. the Nets to fans, according to Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link).

The NBA recently instructed its teams to prepare for the possibility of playing home games with only essential personnel in the building, and had scheduled a Wednesday afternoon conference call with team owners and governors to discuss its response to the coronavirus outbreak.

A pair of Warriors games at Chase Center – Thursday vs. Brooklyn and March 25 vs. Atlanta – will be affected by the City of San Francisco’s decision to ban gatherings of 1,000+ people for the next two weeks. It remains to be seen how Golden State’s home games will be impacted beyond that date, or whether the league will elect to have games played behind closed doors in other NBA cities.

However, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link) hears from a source that the Warriors are planning to play their home games without fans for the “foreseeable” future, barring a change in the city’s directive. The team is still meeting to discuss the situation and could receive further direction from the NBA following today’s conference call, Woj adds (via Twitter).

Local governments in Ohio and D.C. have also recommended that indoor mass gatherings be postponed or cancelled — however, for the time being, that’s just a recommendation, not a ban. The Cavaliers and Wizards are unlikely to take any drastic measures without official word coming down from the NBA.

Warriors’ Home Games In Jeopardy Due To Virus

March 11th, 2020 at 12:13pm CST by Dana Gauruder

MARCH 11, 12:13pm: The City of San Francisco has banned public gatherings of 1,000+ people for the next two weeks, according to Connor Letourneau of The San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter links).

The Warriors have two home games during that stretch – Thursday vs. Brooklyn and March 25 vs. Atlanta – so we should get an update soon on the organization’s plans for those games.

MARCH 10, 10:54pm: The Warriors could be the first NBA team whose home games are jeopardized by the coronavirus. There are “strong, strong, strong indications” that Golden State’s home game on Tuesday is likely to be the last one in the area not played in an empty arena for a while, Tim Kawakami of The Athletic tweets.

There will soon be a clear decision and announcement on sports events in the San Francisco area, Kawakami adds. The Warriors moved into their new arena in San Francisco this fall.

Fear of the virus apparently impacted attendance on the Warriors’ game against the Clippers, as Monte Poole from NBC Sports Bay Area tweeted out a photo of pockets of empty seats in the normally filled area. The Warriors are scheduled to play another home game against the Nets on Thursday, then embark on a road trip before returning to play the Hawks on March 25.

The league is scheduled to hold a conference call with team owners and governors on Wednesday to discuss the matter.

The virus has already impacted a conference basketball tournament at an NBA venue. The Mid-American Conference tournament, which will be held in Rockets Mortgage Fieldhouse — the Cavaliers’ home area — will be closed to the general public. That decision came hours after Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine recommended that sporting events at indoor facilities in the state take place without spectators.

The NHL’s San Jose Sharks are pondering what to do with their home games after Santa Clara County’s Public Health Department announced on Monday a mandatory order requiring cancellation of “mass gatherings” of more than 1,000 people for three weeks. The Sharks appear to be leaning toward playing those games in their home arena without fans, rather than moving them to a neutral or road site.

NBA Has Discussed Possibility Of Relocating Games

March 11th, 2020 at 8:29am CST by Luke Adams

As the NBA continues to discuss potential responses to the coronavirus situation, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports that one scenario the league has considered would involve relocating some games to NBA cities that have yet to suffer outbreaks.

For instance, if a team forced out of its home arena due to a local outbreak, the NBA has weighed the possibility of moving that club’s games to the opponents’ arena, or even to a neutral site, says Wojnarowski.

That’s just one of several possible measures being discussed by the NBA, which continues to mull the idea of disallowing spectators for games or even suspending games for a period of time. As Wojnarowski explains, the league’s conversations are complicated by the fact that limited public testing in the United States has resulted in an incomplete picture of how “widespread and debilitating” the virus may become.

Sources tell ESPN that the NBA has been hesitant to take a drastic step such as voluntarily eliminating fans from home games. However, the idea of moving games to new cities may be problematic too — bringing players and team personnel from an area more significantly affected by the virus to an area that hasn’t yet been affected seems ill-advised for containment purposes.

As we noted on Tuesday night, the Warriors are one team whose home games may be impacted sooner rather than later, as government officials in the Bay Area consider how extensively to limit indoor public gatherings. Conversations between San Francisco health officials and the Warriors have been ongoing, according to Wojnarowski, who hears from sources that Golden State is the NBA’s highest-grossing team on game nights, earning between $3.6-3.8MM per contest.

The NBA, which is scheduled to have a conference call with ownership representatives on Wednesday, has also scheduled a call with all 30 heads of basketball operations for Thursday, tweets Marc Stein of The New York Times.

Basketball leagues in Europe continue to be affected by the spread of coronavirus, with EuroLeague and EuroCup games in Italy being relocated.

Mid-Level Used On Mulder

March 10th, 2020 at 9:34pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Warriors used a remaining portion of their mid-level exception to sign shooting guard Mychal Mulder to a three-year contract, John Hollinger of The Athletic tweets. The last two years of the contract are not fully guaranteed. Mulder will receive a partial guarantee of $200K if he’s on the opening-night roster next season, ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets. His contract for the 2021/22 campaign has no guarantees. Golden State is now $310K below the luxury-tax line, Marks adds.

Mychal Mulder Signs Multi-Year Deal With Warriors

March 10th, 2020 at 1:25pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Warriors have signed Mychal Mulder to a multi-year contract, the team announced on Twitter. It’s a minimum-salary deal that’s not fully guaranteed beyond this season, according to Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The rookie guard out of Kentucky was briefly a free agent after his 10-day contract with the team expired Saturday night. Golden State could have signed him to a second 10-day deal, but opted for the long-term arrangement.

After spending three years in the G League, Mulder made a strong impression in his first real NBA opportunity. He averaged 12.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists in six games, making two starts. Coach Steve Kerr indicated after Saturday’s contest that the Warriors liked Mulder and intended to bring him back.

The signing leaves Golden State $310K under the luxury tax, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). They have two players on 10-day contracts, which each carry a $91,557 tax hit. Chasson Randle‘s deal will expire Thursday, while Dragan Bender is signed through Saturday. Marks adds that signing Bender for the rest of the season on Sunday would cost the team $293K.

Free Agent Stock Watch 2020: Pacific Division

March 9th, 2020 at 8:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Every week, Hoops Rumors takes a closer look at players who will be free agents or could become free agents next offseason. We examine if their stock is rising or falling due to performance and other factors. This week, we take a look at players from the Pacific Division:

Marquese Chriss, Warriors, 22, C (Up) – Signed to a two-year, $2.48MM deal in 2019
The eighth overall pick of the 2016 draft flamed out in Phoenix, Houston and Cleveland, but he’s taken advantage of his opportunity in Golden State. His playing time has gradually increased and so has his production. He averaged 13.8 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 2.0 APG and 1.8 BPG last month; In his first four games this month, he’s posted a stat line of 14.5/10.0/3.8/1.5 in those categories. Golden State has until mid-July to guarantee his $1.824MM salary for next season. That’s a dirt-cheap price for a young rotation big man.

Marcus Morris, Clippers, 30, PF (Down) – Signed to a one-year, $15MM deal in 2019
Morris has jumped right into the Clippers’ rotation since the Knicks traded him. He’s started all 11 games since the deal became official, averaging 28.9 MPG. Unfortunately, Morris seemingly left his jump shot in the Big Apple. He’s made just 37.3% of his field-goal attempts and 26.3% of his 3-point tries with his new team. In the big showdown with the Lakers on Sunday, Morris clanked all nine of his shots. His defensive versatility will keep him in the rotation, but he needs to regain his perimeter touch to stay on the court in crunch time. Otherwise, he may have to drop his price tag this summer.

Quinn Cook, Lakers, 26, PG (Down) – Signed to a two-year, $6MM deal in 2019
Cook was a steady presence with Golden State last season, as he appeared in 74 regular-season games and 17 more in the postseason. He’s gotten lost in the shuffle with the Lakers. He’s the de facto No. 4 point guard behind Avery Bradley, Rajon Rondo and Alex Caruso, and has only played 22 minutes since the All-Star break. Cook is a solid 3-point shooter — 41.2% for his career — which would make him a valuable reserve on many rosters. The Lakers have until June 29 to guarantee Cook’s $3MM salary for next season. It seems likely he’ll become an unrestricted free agent, despite a $1MM partial guarantee.

Frank Kaminsky, Suns, 26, PF (Down) – Signed to two-year, $9.77MM deal in 2019
Kaminsky was in and out of Charlotte’s rotation last season, but he got a chance to reboot his career in Phoenix. The early returns were promising — he had four 20-point games in December. Shortly after Christmas, Kaminsky suffered a stress fracture in his right knee and he hasn’t seen the court again. The team holds a $5MM option on his contract next season. With Dario Saric and Aron Baynes headed to the open market, the Suns will have tough decision to make regarding Kaminsky, since that option must be exercised before free agency begins.

Alex Len, Kings, 26, C (Up) – Signed to a two-year, $8.5MM deal in 2018
Len has generally been productive since being dealt to Sacramento. He had a double-double in 21 minutes against Oklahoma City, an 8-point, 13-rebound, 5-block performance against Detroit and a 15-point, 7-rebound outing in 15 minutes against Toronto. His playing time will continue to fluctuate in the Kings’ crowded frontcourt. Sacramento’s motivation to acquire him was his expiring contract, but he definitely hasn’t hurt his value since the deal. He’ll head into unrestricted free agency this summer and should be able to hook on with a team seeking another big body to fortify its bench.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Kevon Looney's Health Issues Increasingly Concerning

March 9th, 2020 at 10:02am CST by Luke Adams

Although Kevon Looney just recently turned 24 years old, his health is becoming an ongoing concern for the Warriors, according to Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area, who notes that Looney’s diagnosis of neuropathy is a chronic condition that can only be managed, not fixed.