Warriors Rumors

Pacific Notes: Warriors, Kawhi, LeBron, Lakers

Despite injuries draining the Warriors’ chances of competing for a title this season, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson have done their best to maintain the uplifting atmosphere the franchise has generated in recent years, writes Mark Medina of USA Today.

Curry last played on October 30 and is expected to miss several more weeks due to a broken left hand, with Thompson still likely to miss the rest of season rehabbing from a torn ACL. Both players have been seen on the sidelines giving advice and firing up teammates despite their injuries.

“They’re just supportive with their antics and are goofy,” teammate Omari Spellman said, as relayed by Medina. “They’re trying to keep it uplifting and loose instead of it being so hectic and chaotic. It’s definitely appreciated that the older guys are taking the time to talk to us younger guys.”

The Warriors have also missed D’Angelo Russell, Draymond Green, Willie Cauley-Stein and others periodically this season, owning the league’s second-worst record at 9-31. Nonetheless, Golden State still sports one of the league’s most formidable cores when healthy, especially when coupled with the positive atmosphere that comes with it.

“That’s what our team has been in the last five years, in terms of taking a lot of joy out of a game and joy in each other’s accomplishments,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “When you see Steph jumping around on the sidelines when one of these young guys is doing something well, it’s a reminder that the foundation has been built.”

There’s more from the Pacific Division tonight:

  • Clippers coach Doc Rivers believes Kawhi Leonard‘s health is trending upwards, and the 2019 NBA Finals MVP agrees, Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN writes. “You know, he’s been doing it a lot lately,” Rivers said. “I think he is in a far better place now than he was in Game 1 [of the regular season], let’s just put it like that. You can see it with him, you can see it in the practices, it’s just going up. You can feel it, you can see it, he has a better thrust now. And it’s good, it has been really good to see.”
  • Lakers star LeBron James passed Michael Jordan for fourth in career field goals made, converting a layup in the first quarter of Friday’s game to reach 12,192 total makes, Dave McMenamin of ESPN details. James passed Jordan in makes on 324 fewer attempts, McMenamin notes. “Any time you’re in a marathon and you’re able to have feats throughout that marathon, I think it’s just pretty cool to be linked with the greats,” James said postgame. “You said the name Michael Jordan; it just means so much to me. Any time I’m linked with his name, with his greatness and what he was able to do with the game. Hopefully, I continue to make him and all the other greats proud. Any time I’m linked with them. Hopefully, I can continue to make my family and my fans proud, as well.”
  • The Lakers are willing to trade virtually anyone to construct a championship-caliber roster this season, Tania Ganguli of the Los Angeles Times writes. With an emphasis on “willing,” Los Angeles is unlikely to make any earth-shattering trades before the Feb. 6 trade deadline, as the team has started the season with an impressive 32-7 record.

“A Long Way To Go” For Stephen Curry

Stephen Curry is traveling with the Warriors for the first time this season, but his timeline for a possible return hasn’t changed, writes Mark Medina of USA Today. Curry, who has missed 35 games with a fractured hand that required surgery, will be re-evaluated February 1. That means Golden State will play at least 10 more games without the two-time MVP.

“There is a long way to go for him to heal and be ready to play in a game,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “He just started really getting onto the court shooting and moving around. He has a ways to go, but it’s good to see him out there.”

Curry was averaging 20.3 PPG when he suffered the injury in the fourth game of the season. His jumper was still on target as he participated in a shooting drill yesterday with Draymond Green and assistant coach Bruce Fraser.

The Warriors’ plans also haven’t changed on fellow Splash Brother Klay Thompson, Medina adds. His condition will be evaluated during the All-Star Break (February 13-17) to see how much progress he has made in his recovery from the ACL injury in his left knee he suffered in Game 6 of the NBA Finals. Thompson has been taking part in shooting practice with his teammates when they have been in San Francisco.

Medina suggests the Warriors might set up conditioning and scrimmaging drills for both players after they have been checked by team doctors.

Curry Explains Postgame Conversation With Giannis

  • After his postgame conversation with Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo on Wednesday went viral, Warriors Stephen Curry claimed to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (video link) that he wasn’t talking to Giannis about teaming up in Golden State in the future — he was giving him his gamer tag for the online game PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. “Don’t shoot the messenger,” Haynes said, perhaps recognizing that some fans will find Curry’s explanation dubious.
  • Former NBA first-round pick Jared Cunningham, who had been playing for the Santa Cruz Warriors in the G League, has opted to return to China and sign with the Shanghai Sharks, tweets Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. Cunningham, who has appeared in 84 regular season NBA games, played in the Chinese Basketball Association for Jiangsu in 2016/17.

NBA Teams With Open Roster Spots

January is generally a month full of roster shuffling in the NBA. The opening of the 10-day contract period (January 5), the salary guarantee deadline (January 7), the two-way contract deadline (January 15), and the upcoming trade deadline (February 6) all incentivize teams to make changes to their rosters.

With those dates in mind, we’re taking a look today at which teams around the NBA still have openings on their 15-man rosters and which ones have a two-way contract slot available.

Listed below, with the help of our roster counts breakdown, are the teams that aren’t carrying full rosters.

Teams with an open 15-man roster spot:

  • Denver Nuggets
  • Golden State Warriors
    • Note: The Warriors have two open roster spots.
  • Houston Rockets
  • Miami Heat
  • Oklahoma City Thunder
  • Orlando Magic
  • Portland Trail Blazers

Not carrying a full 15-man roster saves a team some money and gives that team the flexibility to add a player in a trade or on the buyout market. For most the teams listed above, the financial factor probably outweighs the roster-flexibility factor — the Warriors, Rockets, Heat, Thunder, and Trail Blazers are all in tax territory, while the Nuggets are close. Only the Magic don’t have immediate tax concerns.

It’s worth noting that because Golden State has two open roster spots, the team has a two-week window after waiving Marquese Chriss on Tuesday to get to the required minimum of 14 players. They’re expected to promote two-way player Damion Lee, which would open up a two-way contract slot.

Teams whose full 15-man rosters include at least one 10-day contract:

  • Atlanta Hawks
  • Brooklyn Nets
  • Cleveland Cavaliers

Paul Watson is currently on a 10-day contract with the Hawks, while Justin Anderson has one with the Nets. Those deals will expire at the end of the day on January 15, so each team could open up a roster spot at that point by not re-signing Watson or Anderson to a second 10-day pact.

As for the Cavaliers, they have two players on 10-day contracts after re-signing Alfonzo McKinnie and Tyler Cook on Thursday. Those deals will run through January 18, at which time Cleveland could re-sign one or both players, or move forward with just 13 players for up to two weeks.

Teams with an open two-way contract slot:

  • Phoenix Suns

The Suns have been the only NBA team carrying just one two-way player all season long. Phoenix has its own G League affiliate and two-way contracts don’t count against the cap at all, so the franchise’s motivation for not filling that spot remains unclear. While there’s no indication a move is imminent, it would be surprising if the Suns don’t sign a second two-way player before the January 15 deadline.

Amick: Warriors Unlikely To Trade D-Lo This Season

  • “There is chatter coming from Orlando” related to forward Aaron Gordon, one executive tells Amick. However, a source with knowledge of the Warriors‘ activity gave Amick a hard “no” when asked specifically about the possibility of the Magic trading Gordon for D’Angelo Russell. Another source said a Russell deal is “unlikely” to happen this season, Amick adds.

    [SOURCE LINK]

Steve Kerr Fined $25K By NBA

  • The NBA has fined Warriors head coach Steve Kerr $25K for “verbally abusing” a game official and failing to leave the court immediately after being ejected, the league announced today in a press release. Kerr expressed his displeasure with a call in the second quarter of Monday’s game vs. Sacramento, yelling “Wake your a– up!” at referee Jason Goldenberg.

Warriors, Marquese Chriss Have Mutual Interest In Reunion

The Warriors waived goodbye to Marquese Chriss prior to his contract becoming guaranteed, though the team has not shut the door on a reunion. Monte Poole of NBC Sports hears that Golden State is high on Chriss’ future and was seeking a way to retain him. However, the Dubs were unable to clear a roster spot before waiving him today.

“He’s a good, young talent,” coach Steve Kerr said after practice Tuesday. “He’s developed. He’s got a fantastic attitude. He’s somebody we were all really hoping we could keep.

“But the rules stipulate that we had to shed money. And this was the end result. Everybody is disappointed — players, coaches, front office. But this is how it worked.”

The franchise needed to open a spot on the roster for Damion Lee, who has just two days of eligibility remaining for the NBA club, as he’s on a two-way contract. Lee and the Warriors are reportedly close to finalizing a multiyear pact.

Golden State could trade away one of its veterans, such as Alec Burks or Willie Cauley-Stein, before the February 6 deadline and open up a roster spot. Poole adds that Chriss, who appeared in 37 games for the club this season, would like to return in the future.

Warriors Waive Marquese Chriss, Will Promote Damion Lee

1:58pm: The Warriors and Lee are working to finalize a multiyear deal that will includes partial guarantees in future seasons, sources tell Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The team could offer Lee up to a four-year deal using its mid-level exception.

7:35am: The Warriors completed a somewhat surprising roster move late on Monday night, waiving big man Marquese Chriss, according to Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link). Using the newly-available roster spot, Golden State will promote two-way player Damion Lee, giving him a standard contract, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

With only 14 players on their 15-man roster before cutting Chriss, the Warriors technically already had a roster spot available to promote Lee. However, the club’s flexibility was limited by its hard cap — with only about $375K in breathing room, there wasn’t enough space to give Lee a prorated minimum salary contract without waiving Chriss, whose salary wasn’t fully guaranteed.

By releasing Chriss in advance of today’s guarantee deadline, Golden State will reduce his cap hit from $1,620,564 to $758,804, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. Lee’s cap hit for the remainder of the season, if he signs on Tuesday, will be $915,573, moving the Warriors slightly closer to their hard cap.

The team will retain its open 15th roster spot, which could still be used later in the season – perhaps on two-way player Ky Bowman – once the prorated minimum salary declines to the point where it would fit beneath the hard cap.

As Slater explains in a full story at The Athletic, parting ways with Chriss wasn’t an easy decision for the Warriors, or a popular one within “some pockets of the organization.” A former lottery pick, Chriss is just 22 years old, was well-liked in the locker room, and had played well in a part-time role this season, with 7.4 PPG, 5.4 RPG, and 1.9 APG in 37 games (17.7 MPG).

However, according to Slater, when Lee agreed to return to the Warriors during the 2019 offseason, he did so with an understanding that he wouldn’t be spending any real time in the G League, and would get a standard roster spot once he exhausted his 45-day NBA limit. Lee has just two of those 45 days remaining, necessitating a move.

In an ideal world, the Warriors would’ve kept both Lee and Chriss, Slater notes. Golden State may have preferred to create space for both players by trading a minimum-salary veteran like Alec Burks or Glenn Robinson III, but with no deal in place, today’s salary guarantee deadline forced the club’s hand on Chriss.

There’s still a chance Chriss could be back at some point — Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets that Golden State definitely hasn’t lost interest in him. But there’s no guarantee that another team won’t scoop him up as a free agent, or even via a waiver claim.

“They said it’s been a tough decision,” Chriss told Slater, after learning of his release. “It is what it is. I’ve accomplished a lot. I’ve shown what I’m capable of. I’ve shown I belong. People make business decisions.”

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Thompson, Curry Anxious To Return

  • The Warriors will send Ky Bowman to the G League when D’Angelo Russell returns from a right shoulder contusion, Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets. Bowman has six days remaining on his 45-day NBA allotment under the terms of a two-way contract. The team’s other two-way player, Damion Lee, has just two days remaining until he must remain in the G League or receive a standard contract. A roster spot is likely to be cleared for Lee at some point, Slater adds.
  • Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry are getting antsy as they rehab from long-term injuries, Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area reports. Thompson is working his way back from the knee injury he suffered during last season’s playoffs, while Curry is rehabbing from hand surgery. “In an ironic way, this has been probably a good chance for them to blow off some stream and whatever metaphor you want to use,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “But that can only last for so long. They’re both dying to play. And we’re dying to have them back.”

Jordan Poole Rediscovers Shot In G League Stint

  • Warriors rookie Jordan Poole rediscovered his shot during a recent stretch in the NBA G League, Marcus White of NBC Sports writes. Poole scored 24 points to help lead Santa Cruz to a 110-106 win over Salt Lake City on Friday, getting recalled by the team the following day. Poole has averaged seven points per game in 30 contests with Golden State this season, shooting just 26% from the floor and 24% from 3-point range.