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Warriors Notes: Kerr, Kuminga, Iguodala, Roster Questions, J. Green

September 23rd, 2022 at 9:42pm CST by Rory Maher

Speaking to Tim Kawakami of The Athletic on his podcast earlier this week, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr noted that Golden State is in a unique position as a title-defending team that has question marks in the rotation beyond its top six players (Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, Draymond Green, Kevon Looney and Jordan Poole). He said he’s looking forward to players having to earn their minutes.

“The beauty of it is everything has to be earned,” Kerr said on Wednesday. “I talk about how unique each season is — that’s what makes this season unique. The first three times we came back from winning championships, the rotations were really set. We had a deep roster, we had veteran rosters, we kind of knew exactly who was going to play and what combinations would form.

“This is very different. It’s rare, I think, for a championship team to come back with a lot of young talent that has a chance to compete for playing time. I like that dynamic. I think competition is good. It brings the best out of everybody. I don’t even really have a rotation. I just look at it as we’ve got six guys who played integral roles in us winning the title. We know who they are. We know what they do. And then everybody else is ‘go’ time. It’s right there for you; you’ve just gotta go earn it.”

Kerr also touched on several other topics with Kawakami, including Jonathan Kuminga, James Wiseman, rookies Ryan Rollins and Patrick Baldwin Jr., tweaks to the coaching staff, and more. Regarding Kuminga, Kerr said the organization is pleased with his progress entering year two.

“JK’s had a really good summer, he’s done everything we’ve asked of him. He’s traveled some, he played for his national team this summer. He’s been working really hard,” Kerr said. “I know there was that weird report that came out, I think Stephen A. Smith said something about JK. And honestly, Bob (Myers) and I, when that came out, we called each other and asked, ‘Where did that come from?’ Because it made no sense. JK’s been great, he’s done everything we’ve asked of him. He’s working hard. I enjoy coaching him. He’s right where he needs to be, and just gotta keep getting better every day.”

Here’s more on the Warriors:

  • Anthony Slater of The Athletic explores what Andre Iguodala‘s return means for the Warriors. Iguodala announced he was returning for his 19th and final season earlier today. In addition to being a locker room mentor for young players like Poole, Kuminga and Moses Moody, Iguodala also showed that he can still provide a lot of on-court value, even his minutes were limited due to nagging injuries. As Slater notes, Golden State was plus-114 in Iguodala’s 603 minutes last season.
  • In a separate story for The Athletic, Slater poses four roster questions entering training camp, including how Wiseman and Kuminga will work together. While both Wiseman and Kuminga have tantalizing potential, spacing might be an issue when they share the court, Slater writes.
  • If free agent addition JaMychal Green can fill the void left by Otto Porter Jr.‘s departure, that would be ideal for the Warriors, according to Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area, who breaks down what fans can expect from JaMychal in 2022/23.
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Warriors Notes: Training Camp, Wiseman, Poole, DiVincenzo

September 22nd, 2022 at 4:11pm CST by Rory Maher

Speaking to the media today, head coach Steve Kerr said the Warriors expect to have a fully healthy roster for training camp, with their first practice coming on Saturday, per Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter links). Rookies Ryan Rollins and Patrick Baldwin Jr., who dealt with injuries this summer, will have no restrictions.

As Slater notes, it will be the first full training camp for third-year center James Wiseman, with his rookie camp disrupted by the pandemic, followed by last year’s injury-plagued season, which saw him miss all of 2021/22 after multiple knee surgeries and setbacks. Kerr said Wiseman has gained confidence in his knee and is healthy now.

“He’s healthy. He’s played in a ton of pickup games in our building (the last month)…I think he’s got a lot of confidence in that knee now. That’s the first step. The next step is finding his role within this team,” Kerr said.

Here’s more on the Warriors:

  • President of basketball operations and general manager Bob Myers said he’ll meet with Jordan Poole‘s agents to discuss a rookie scale extension once the team returns from Tokyo in early October, according to Slater (via Twitter), who says it will be the “first substantial negotiations” about a potential deal. Golden State is playing a couple of preseason games against the Wizards in Japan on September 30 and October 1.
  • Regarding the possible extensions for Poole and other veterans on the roster like Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins, Myers said the price points will play a factor. “We want all those guys. Can we get them all? I don’t know. It depends on the money … we’re not at the point where we can make those decisions yet,” he said (Twitter link via Kendra Andrews of ESPN).
  • Guard Donte DiVincenzo, who signed with the Warriors as a free agent this summer, has hired a new agent. He’ll now be represented by Jason Glushon of Glushon Sports Management, tweets Liz Mullen of Sports Business Journal.
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Warriors Sign, Waive Dusty Hannahs

September 22nd, 2022 at 4:02pm CST by Luke Adams

SEPTEMBER 22: The Warriors have waived Hannahs, Hoops Rumors has learned. As detailed below, his next stop figures to be Santa Cruz.

SEPTEMBER 21: The Warriors have signed guard Dusty Hannahs, the team announced today in a press release.

Hannahs, who appeared in four games with the Grizzlies between 2018-20, spent last season with the Adelaide 36ers in Australia’s National Basketball League. The 29-year-old has a ton of experience at the G League level, having appeared in 146 total NBAGL games, including 13 in 2020/21 for the Santa Cruz Warriors, Golden State’s affiliate.

His best professional season came in 2019/20, when he put up 21.4 PPG, 2.2 RPG, and 2.1 APG on .469/.447/.904 shooting in 37 G League contests (30.9 MPG) for the Memphis Hustle.

Hannahs’ time on Golden State’s roster will likely be short-lived. According to Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link), the former Arkansas Razorback – who signed an Exhibit 10 contract – is expected to report to Santa Cruz after being waived. His Exhibit 10 deal will assure he receives a bonus worth up to $50K if he spends at least 60 days with the Warriors’ G League team.

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Pacific Notes: Iguodala, Schröder, Westbrook, Sarver

September 18th, 2022 at 2:45pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Warriors anticipate that longtime veteran leader Andre Iguodala will announce his return to the club, writes Marc Stein on Substack. Iguodala has previously suggested he will publicly reveal his decision during an upcoming episode of his podcast Point Forward, co-hosted by his former Sixers teammate Evan Turner.

Stein reports that Golden State expects Iguodala, who has won four titles with the team, will be back for his 19th NBA season in 2022/23 rather than opting to retire, but is prepared for either outcome. The Warriors top off their 2022 training camp earlier than most other teams, as they will be playing exhibition games abroad.

There’s more out of the Pacific Division:

  • Elsewhere in his latest Substack piece, Stein suggests that the Lakers consider Russell Westbrook and new addition Dennis Schröder to be their top two point guards. Sources inform Stein that the Lakers see the 6’1″ Patrick Beverley, who started as a point guard alongside shooting guard D’Angelo Russell last season with the Timberwolves, as a swingman who can defend and shoot from long range, rather than a point guard, heading into his 11th NBA season. Stein writes that L.A. intends to use Kendrick Nunn, Austin Reaves, and Lonnie Walker at the shooting guard or small forward position instead of point guard.
  • Earlier today, Schröder led his native Germany to a win over Poland to secure a bronze medal in this year’s EuroBasket contest, per Eurohoops. The 6’3″ Lakers point guard scored 26 points on 7-of-10 shooting. “That was the goal of the federation, of coach Herbert and for the team and it’s an unbelievable feeling to win a medal in a Eurobasket,” Schröder said after the game. Schröder’s performance in tournament play this summer reportedly helped his cause in free agency.
  • NBA commissioner Adam Silver seemed uncomfortable at being forced to defend the misbehavior of temporarily suspended Suns team owner Robert Sarver in a Wednesday press conference, writes Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe. Sarver has been banned from having any role with either Phoenix basketball club he owns, the Suns or the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, for the 2022/23 season.
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Warriors Notes: Green, Durant, Wiggins, Poole, Baldwin, Rollins

September 17th, 2022 at 10:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kevin Durant took a lot of heat for joining the Warriors in 2016 just weeks after they defeated his Thunder team in the conference finals, but Draymond Green believes Durant was interested in making the move long before that series. Appearing this week on the “Checc’n In” podcast, Green said Durant was attracted to Golden State because of its style of play (hat tip to Eduardo Razo of NBC Sports Bay Area).

“Everybody’s running pick and roll and taking advantage of mismatches because that was the cycle that the NBA was in,” Green said. “We then changed the game of basketball and how basketball was played. KD saw that. KD wanted to play that brand of basketball. KD wanted to play with us … In my heart, believe before it ever came to them being up 3-1. KD wanted to come to the Warriors.”

There’s more on the defending champs:

  • Andrew Wiggins‘ future with Golden State appears set, but Jordan Poole‘s is more uncertain, an anonymous Western Conference executive told Sean Deveney of Heavy. Both players are nearing the end of their current contracts, and the Warriors will face tough financial decisions on who they can keep. “Wiggins is like the opposite version of Harrison Barnes, where Barnes won rings early, then wanted to get a bigger role and be the star,” the executive said. “He got to do that for some bad teams and now it is, ‘Jeez, I wish I was winning again.’ Wiggins is going the opposite way. He’s pretty well set on staying with the Warriors, if they can pay him.” The executive believes Poole, who’s only 23, may have a desire to leave for a larger role with another team.
  • First-round pick Patrick Baldwin Jr. is expected to be ready when training camp opens, but the Warriors haven’t decided if he’ll play in the first two preseason games in Japan, according to C.J. Holmes of The San Francisco Chronicle. Baldwin sat out Summer League and rested through much of this offseason because of an ankle injury that dates back to high school.
  • A loaded roster will likely keep Ryan Rollins in the G League for most of his rookie season, per Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area. Still, the Warriors liked the Toledo product enough to trade up to grab him with the 44th pick and give him part of their mid-level exception in a three-year, $4.8MM contract.
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Warriors Notes: Thompson, Iguodala, Green

September 15th, 2022 at 11:33pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson is hoping to get back to his previous All-Star-caliber output during the 2022/23 season, writes Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area.

Poole cautions that Thompson may no longer be quite as versatile on defense as he was through 2019, and may see fewer minutes guarding smaller perimeter players. However, Poole notes that the wing’s two-and-a-half seasons spent rehabilitating from major injuries have helped him flesh out his well-rounded offensive game even further than before. Poole also anticipates that Thompson could see his minutes reduced during the regular season, with the ultimate goal being the preservation of his body for a run at a fifth NBA title.

In his 32 healthy regular season games last year, all starts, Thompson still put up solid numbers for the eventual 2022 champs. He averaged 20.4 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 2.8 APG, posting .429/.385/.902 shooting splits.

There’s more out of Golden State:

  • The Warriors continue to keep a rotation spot open for reserve wing Andre Iguodala heading into the 2022/23 season, which would be the swingman’s 19th in the league. Anthony Slater of The Athletic explains that the 2015 Finals MVP has developed into one of the most trusted voices in the locker room for Golden State, even as his on-court contributions have become significantly more limited. The 38-year-old has said that he will announce his eventual decision regarding his future on his podcast.
  • During a potential contract year, All-Star Warriors power forward Draymond Green is looking to stay healthier than he did in the team’s title-winning 2021/22 season, when he looked like a Defensive Player of the Year candidate ahead of a midseason back injury that shelved him for two months, writes Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area.
  • In case you missed it, team president Bob Myers appeared on the TK Show with Tim Kawakami this week to discuss the team’s historic payroll, his expectations for Iguodala’s future, Golden State’s impending decision on its team option for oft-injured center James Wiseman‘s fourth season, and more. We have the highlights here.
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Warriors’ Myers Talks Roster, Payroll, Iguodala, Wiseman, More

September 15th, 2022 at 11:01am CST by Luke Adams

Appearing on The TK Show with The Athletic’s Tim Kawakami, Warriors president of basketball operations Bob Myers said he expects to open the 2022/23 season with just 14 players under contract, leaving one opening on the team’s 15-man roster. However, he left the door open for that to change.

“I think we’d like to stay at 14, barring somebody that just snatches it,” Myers said. “But we said the same thing last year. If you would’ve been doing this podcast with me last year at the same time, I would’ve said the same thing. And (Gary) Payton (II) came along and took that job and put us in a spot where he kind of forced our hand to add him to the roster. If somebody does that (we’d keep them) — you know (team owner) Joe (Lacob) as good as I do, he wants to win. But I don’t see that. I actually hope it doesn’t happen because it’s just another big chunk on top of a pretty big payroll.”

Addressing the Warriors’ record-setting payroll, Myers acknowledged that there are “constraints,” but he said he has never been given a specific line that he can’t cross and that those financial decisions are made on a situational basis.

Golden State’s long-term cap outlook will play a role in the team’s ability to lock up Jordan Poole, Andrew Wiggins, and Draymond Green, all of whom can reach free agency in 2023. Myers told Kawakami that he hopes the franchise can find a way to retain all three players long-term.

“We’ve had conversations with all three players (and) their representatives. I’m not going to get into the likelihood or not of any of them getting done, but we know how important they are. I don’t know that we win a championship last year if you take any of them away,” Myers said. “… Too early for me to say what will happen or won’t happen, but the goal is to keep those guys, all three of them, as long as we can. But again, there’s a financial component.”

Here’s more from the Warriors’ top basketball executive:

  • The Warriors expect a decision from Andre Iguodala soon and are hoping that he decides to return to the team for at least one more year. “He’s one of the few people in the world who can look (Stephen) Curry or Draymond or Klay (Thompson) in the eye and meet them at their level, but also grab a Jordan Poole or (James) Wiseman or (Jonathan) Kuminga and speak to them and encourage them,” Myers told Kawakami. “There’s no one else in the league that can do that for our team. And we think he can still play and help us in certain spots. So we really want him back. This isn’t like a charity thing. It’s not, ‘Oh, you know, we can’t not say yes to Andre because he’s won championships.’ We have pursued him more than he has pursued us.”
  • Myers acknowledged that the Warriors could use one more ball-handler, but suggested the team may not address that need right away. “If you’re talking about just a point guard, that player probably only plays if Curry or Poole is out. So you’re talking about 12 minutes if one of them is out,” Myers said, noting that the team could use a two-way slot to sign that sort of player. “… That also may be a situation where if (an injury) does happen and we need to add, we would add on the fly rather than rostering somebody right away. … That’s where the latitude of the 15th spot may be good too, to see how things break, and if we need a guard, we can add one as we go.”
  • Myers expects rookies Patrick Baldwin Jr. (ankle) and Ryan Rollins (foot) to be ready to go for training camp. “Patrick’s been playing pick-up for the last few weeks and Ryan’s just about to start,” he told Kawakami.
  • Barring another injury this fall, there’s “no reason to think” the Warriors won’t exercise Wiseman’s fourth-year rookie scale option for 2023/24 by next month’s deadline, according to Myers. That option would pay the former No. 2 overall pick approximately $12.1MM.
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Stephen Curry Would Have Supported Kevin Durant Trade

September 12th, 2022 at 9:50am CST by Arthur Hill

Kevin Durant is still in Brooklyn after his trade request dominated the news for most of the summer. No one was willing to meet the Nets‘ high asking price, but Stephen Curry tells Matt Sullivan of Rolling Stone that he would have gladly welcomed Durant back to the Warriors.

Golden State was believed to be in a strong position to bid for Durant because of the team’s collection of young talent and draft assets. Curry revealed that there was “a conversation internally” involving Warriors management and selected players about pursuing a trade, and he was completely on board.

“I was never hesitant,” Curry said. “The idea of playing with KD and knowing who he is as a person, from our history in those three years, I think KD’s a really good dude. I think he is misunderstood. I think he has had certain things happen in his life that hurt his ability to trust people around him, in a sense of making him feel safe at all times. So all of those things, I understand, having played with him and gotten to know him. I love that dude.

“And if you said, ‘Oh, KD’s coming back, and we’re gonna play with him,’ I had so much fun playing with him those three years, I’d be like, ‘Hell, yeah!’ Then you have to think: What does that actually mean? What does it look like? You tell me I’m playing with [Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole, and Draymond Green], I’m like, ‘Hell, yeah!’ There’s all types of emotion and things that happen to the league. And if anybody’s saying that you wouldn’t entertain that conversation — no disrespect to anybody on our team — but you don’t know how things work. But you also understand, like, if we run this thing back, I’ve got complete confidence in my team that we can win it again, as constructed.

“So, all those things were true. And it started with me wanting to play with KD at the beginning. Yeah, it’s about winning, it’s about having fun, playing the game of basketball. And that was part of the reaction of, like, ‘Yeah, it’d be amazing.’ What does that actually mean?”

The Warriors were extremely successful during Durant’s three years with the franchise, winning two NBA titles and losing in the 2019 Finals amid bad luck with injuries. He averaged 25.8 points, 7.1 rebounds and 5.4 assists over those three seasons and was named Finals MVP in 2017 and 2018.

However, Durant was heavily criticized for his 2016 free agency decision to join Warriors, who were coming off a record-setting regular season and a seven-game loss in the NBA Finals. There were also outward signs of unhappiness, especially in his final year in the Bay Area. Durant ultimately made the decision to head to Brooklyn when he became a free agent again after the 2018/19 season.

One of Durant’s current Nets teammates is Seth Curry, who said he talked to his brother about the possibility of Durant returning to Golden State.

“For him to even be entertaining the thought of having KD back on the team kind of speaks to his character,” Seth told Rolling Stone in July. “Who knows? I might be in the trade with him.”

Sullivan also recounts a conversation that Stephen Curry had with Snoop Dogg regarding what Curry viewed as Durant’s unrealistic expectations of how much talent a team would have remaining after trading for him. Curry concluded that under the circumstances, Durant’s best move was to stay with Brooklyn.

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2022/23 NBA Over/Unders: Pacific Division

September 12th, 2022 at 8:30am CST by Luke Adams

The 2022/23 NBA regular season will tip off next month, so it’s time to start getting serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign and to continue an annual Hoops Rumors tradition.

With the help of the lines from a handful of sports betting sites – including Bovada, BetOnline, and Betway – we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division. In a series of team-by-team polls, you’ll get the chance to weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.

In 2021/22, our voters went 16-14 on their over/under picks. Can you top that in ’22/23?

We’ll keep our series going today with the Pacific division…

Golden State Warriors

Phoenix Suns

Los Angeles Clippers

Los Angeles Lakers

Sacramento Kings

Previous voting results:

Central

  • Milwaukee Bucks (52.5 wins): Over (75.5%)
  • Cleveland Cavaliers (47.5 wins): Over (73.4%)
  • Chicago Bulls (44.5 wins): Over (51.6%)
  • Detroit Pistons (28.5 wins): Over (51.6%)
  • Indiana Pacers (23.5 wins): Under (62.8%)

Southeast

  • Miami Heat (50.5 wins): Under (56.6%)
  • Atlanta Hawks (46.5 wins): Over (53.6%)
  • Charlotte Hornets (36.5 wins): Under (63.0%)
  • Washington Wizards (35.5 wins): Under (50.8%)
  • Orlando Magic (26.5 wins): Over (55.3%)

Southwest

  • Memphis Grizzlies (49.5 wins): Over (68.7%)
  • Dallas Mavericks (48.5 wins): Over (63.7%)
  • New Orleans Pelicans (44.5 wins): Over (61.2%)
  • Houston Rockets (24.5 wins): Under (61.8%)
  • San Antonio Spurs (23.5 wins): Under (67.5%)
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Why Moses Moody Will Face High Expectations This Season

September 11th, 2022 at 8:54pm CST by JD Shaw
  • C.J. Holmes of the San Francisco Chronicle explores why Warriors guard Moses Moody will face high expectations this season. Moody, 20, was drafted No. 14 overall by the team in 2021. He appeared in 52 games last season, averaging 4.4 points and 1.5 rebounds in 11.7 minutes per contest. He also averaged 31.8 points and 7.0 rebounds in four G League outings.
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