Category: Golden State Warriors Blog

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In G League, Capital City Go-Go add forward Jordan Bell

The Capital City Go-Go, the Washington Wizards’ NBA G League affiliate, added forward Jordan Bell off of waivers today. In a corresponding move, the team waived forward Stefan Jankovic due to a season ending injury.

Bell, a 6-8, 216 pound forward-center from the University of Oregon, has appeared in 29 games with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Memphis Grizzlies this season. Originally taken with the 38th overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls, Bell was traded on draft night to the Golden State Warriors and played in 125 games (16 starts) for the Warriors between 2017 and 2019, averaging 3.9 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. In his time with Golden State, Bell also appeared in 32 playoff games and was a member of the 2018 NBA Champion Warriors team.

Bell was signed as a free agent by the Timberwolves in 2019 and played in 27 games prior to being included in a four-team trade that sent him to Houston in February. Bell was traded from Houston to Memphis the following day and appeared in two games with the Grizzlies before being waived on March 2.

Bell played three seasons at Oregon, leaving as the school’s all-time leader in blocks (235) and field goal percentage (.610). Bell helped lead the Ducks to a Final Four appearance his redshirt junior season, where he also was voted the 2017 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year.

Warriors did uncover some talent this season

Okay, maybe it hasn’t been the Warriors’ year. It’s nice that Stephen Curry recently made his return — though a common flu quickly put a temporary stop to that — but clearly this squad, which of course also includes Draymond Green and an out-for-the-season Klay Thompson, is all about next season.

Still, here’s NBC Sports Bay Area ounding up some 2019-20 positives:

In the front court, Eric Paschall has emerged as a potential future foundational piece, sporting an offensive game that combines unique strength to go with mature finesse. Marquese Chriss might end up being the starting center next season as he has blossomed into an impactful young big man.

In the backcourt, Damion Lee has proven himself to be a high energy, reliable rotation piece that can put up points in a hurry. Jordan Poole has struggled with an inconsistent shot this season, but at only 20 years old, has grown considerably in his playmaking and ball handling, making him more valuable than just a potential future floor spacer.

It’ll be interesting to see who starts for the Warriors next season alongside Steph, Klay and Dray. And almost as importantly, who the key bench guys are. With some slick signings and key role player additions, the Warriors next year could leap high up in the standings once again.

Stephen Curry out for Sixers vs Warriors game with flu

Tonight on ABC TV, the Sixers visit a Warriors team that has spent the season losing massive amounts of games but recently got Stephen Curry back in action. But Steph’s return has been cut short, at least for tonight, as the superstar guard is out with the flu. Here’s the Bay Area News Group reporting:

Warriors guard Stephen Curry was diagnosed with the flu Saturday morning but is not showing signs of the coronavirus, according to team physician Dr. Robert Nied.

“This morning Stephen Curry was diagnosed with influenza A by a positive viral testing,” Nied said via a team statement. “We have identified his probable source contact who is not part of basketball operations. He has no specific risk factors for COVID-19. He has the seasonal flu. We have begun treatment for Stephen and instituted our team protocol for influenza exposure.”

The world is quite understandably nervous right now. We’re all staying calm and staying informed.

As for Steph, hopefully he’s fine soon.

Stephen Curry returning tonight for Warriors

It’s been a lost season for the Warriors, but they’re getting a giant boost back tonight in the form of superstar guard Stephen Curry. Here’s NBC Sports Bay Area:

Steph Curry is making his long awaited return to the Warriors on Thursday night at Chase Center against the Toronto Raptors after missing the last 58 games. Coach Steve Kerr certainly hopes his two-time MVP can play in all of Golden State’s remaining 21 games, but back-to-back’s could be a different story.

“It’s all gonna be day-to-day,” Kerr said Wednesday night on 95.7 The Game’s “Damon, Ratto & Kolsky.” “We’ll see how he’s doing on the following day after the game and go from there. I think everything is really a possibility, but it will all be determined on Steph’s health.”

According to the Bay Area News Group, “Curry said he expects to be on a minutes restriction of between 24 and 28 minutes when he makes his return on Thursday against the Raptors.”

The Raptors clinch a 2020 playoff spot tonight if they win this game. It’ll be fun to see if Steph’s return can serve as a spoiler for that quest.

Suns lose again, now to Warriors

The Suns got off to a good start this NBA season. Then things started going downhill. Very downhill. We’re talking about a really long hill. Here’s the Arizona Republic:

Marquese Chriss followed up a missed shot with an emphatic dunk in the fourth quarter, stared into the stands – and there was no reaction.

That’s how lifeless the Phoenix Suns were.

Facing the worst team in the Western Conference that had only eight available players, Phoenix lost embarrassing fashion, 115-99, before 16,395 fans at Talking Stick Resort Arena.

The Suns (24-37) cleared the bench with 1:42 left to a half empty arena that housed perhaps Phoenix’s worst loss of the season.

The Suns shot 40%, gave up 17 points off 20 turnovers and blew an 18-point lead in losing a third straight game, all at home, at the halfway mark of a six-game homestand.

In the win, Eric Paschall scored 25 points off the bench, starting guard Damion Lee had 20 points, five rebounds, eight assists and no turnovers, and Andrew Wiggins shot just 6 of 20 but still filled the stat-sheet with 17 points, seven rebounds, five assists, three steals and two blocks. The Warriors had 30 assists on their 41 made field goals.

The Suns are now 24-37 this season, which is the third-worst record in the Western conference.

Andrew Wiggins off to good start for Warriors

Are you mentally prepared to read something nice about Andrew Wiggins?

Hopefully so, because it’s about to happen. Here’s NBC Sports Bay Area reporting:

In his first week as a Warrior, Wiggins is averaging 23 points per game on an incredibly efficient 57.5 percent from the field and 53.3 percent from deep. His 23 points have come on 13.3 field goal attempts per game, rather than the 22.4 points on 18.8 field goal attempts he put up in the first 42 games this season with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

He has shown an impressive ability to make quick moves off the dribble to attack the hoop, and slash through the lane off the ball. Unlike his days with the Timberwolves, Wiggins is buying into Kerr’s free-flowing, ball movement offense, and avoiding unnecessary dribbling and stagnant iso-ball. Per Kerr’s wishes, he also is sprinting in transition and using his athleticism and size to beat his defender down the court.

Of course, this is all well and good, but the real test for Wiggins’ long-term prospects this squad is how he looks alongside a full-strength squad that includes a healthy Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. But we won’t know the answer to that for quite a while.

For now, after one mere week, Wiggins hasn’t disappointed.

Stephen Curry reportedly attends Kanye West’s Sunday Service

For those of you who enjoy keeping up with off-court pop culture news, especially when it involves Kanye West, here’s the San Jose Mercury News:

You may have heard of Sunday Service, a weekly gospel concert led by rapper Kanye West that has attracted a who’s who of celebrities — including Brad Pitt, Katy Perry and Idris Elba, among others… Steph Curry is the latest celebrity to attend the music performance/spiritual service.

There is no word yet on exactly when Steph may return to action for the Warriors.

Glenn Robinson III has nice opportunity on Warriors

The Warriors are 3-15, which is currently the worst record in the NBA. They have multiple NBA All-Stars on their roster who are spending more time injured on the bench than healthy on the court. The result is an opportunity for supporting cast players to rise up and lead.

Glenn Robinson III, who already had an increased role this season with Kevin Durant gone and a hole at the small forward spot, plus Klay Thompson being out, gained even more responsibility as injuries kept piling up.

His average so far this season is 12.0 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists in quite a bit of playing time: 31.7 minutes per game.

It’ll be worth watching to see how his productivity fares in the coming weeks.

On the Dec. 25 Lakers vs. Warriors game

At 8 p.m. Tuesday on ESPN, LeBron James and the Lakers visit Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and the Warriors. Here’s the LA Daily News with some thoughts on the matchup:

The timing of the game is intriguing, given that the Lakers are coming off a week hot with James saying he’d like to play alongside Anthony Davis. With rumors earlier in the month that the Lakers were open to trading for Trevor Ariza and other trade talk rumors continually circling the team, even a regular season game can take on a mountain of seemingly high stakes. It has the feeling of an audition — even if that’s not something the Lakers will admit.

For their own part, the Lakers did their best to tamp down the importance of the Warriors’ game. Both Rajon Rondo and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope said it was just another game, and Luke Walton said he thought it was imprudent to start sizing up how the Lakers match up with the Warriors.

“I never like to put too much importance on one game as far as it shows you how close or how far you are,” he said. “They’re a team that can hit 30 threes in a night, doesn’t mean they’re that much better than you, or we can go up there and win. Doesn’t mean now they need to close that gap to us. It’ll be a lot of fun.”

The only Laker who admitted to looking forward to the game more than others was JaVale McGee, who will be receiving his 2018 championship ring before the game.

Tuesday’s NBA Christmas day action begins at 12 p.m. ET with the Knicks hosting the Bucks.

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Warriors would reportedly still like to hold onto Patrick McCaw

Remember guard Patrick McCaw? He got some attention while on the most famous team in the world, the championship-winning Warriors. He averaged 4.0 points per game in 2016-17, and that same number in 2017-18. You probably haven’t thought about him in a while. That’s because he hasn’t been on the court this season. Here’s Yahoo Sports with an update on what the Warriors may be thinking about the situation:

The Golden State Warriors are still prepared to match any offer sheet for restricted free-agent holdout guard Patrick McCaw, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

McCaw, 23, has held out this season and stayed away from the team in an attempt to secure a contract of his liking or in hopes that the Warriors would renounce him, setting free the No. 38 pick in the 2016 NBA draft to sign with any team without restriction.

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