Golden State Warriors Blog – Page 16 – NBA Blog

Warriors sign Damion Lee to two-way contract

The Warriors on Saturday signed free agent guard Damion Lee to a two-way contract.

Lee, 25, appeared in 15 games (11 starts) with the Atlanta Hawks after earning a GATORADE Call-Up on March 13, recording averages of 10.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.36 steals in 26.9 minutes. In 38 games (13 starts) last season with the Santa Cruz Warriors. Lee averaged 15.8 points on 45.6 percent shooting to go along with 5.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.40 steals in 29.7 minutes.

The 6’6” guard was selected to the USA Basketball World Cup Qualifying Team that played two exhibition games in Santa Cruz on February 23 and 26, 2018. Lee recorded seven points, four rebounds and four assists in 33 minutes in wins over Cuba and Puerto Rico during the second window of the FIBA World Cup Qualifying first-round.

A native of Baltimore, Maryland, Lee played collegiately at Drexel University for four seasons before spending his redshirt senior season at the University of Louisville in 2015-16 as a graduate transfer. At Louisville, Lee started all 30 games and averaged 15.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.5 steals in 33.6 minutes per game.

Per NBA rules, teams are permitted to sign two players to two-way contracts in addition to the 15-man regular-season roster. Players signed to a two-way contract may accrue no more than 45 days of service with their respective NBA club during the regular season, spending the remainder of the season with the team’s G League affiliate. The Warriors’ two-way players will have the ability to spend time with both Golden State and the team’s G League affiliate in Santa Cruz.

Last season, two-way guard Quinn Cook appeared in 33 games (18 starts) with Golden State, averaging 9.5 points on 48.4 percent shooting from the field, 2.7 assists and 2.5 rebounds in 22.4 minutes per game. The guard signed a multiyear contract with the Warriors on April 10, 2018.

Warriors sign Jonas Jerebko

The Warriors have signed free agent forward Jonas Jerebko.

For a championship team loaded with stars in their starting lineup, Jerebko is a very nice addition as limited-minutes support off the bench.

Per multiple reports, the deal is a one-year, veteran-minimum contract worth $2.1 million.

Jerebko, 31, averaged 5.8 points on 46.6 percent shooting from the field and 41.4 percent shooting from three-point range, to go along with 3.3 rebounds and 15.3 minutes in 74 games (19 starts) with the Utah Jazz last season. A nine-year NBA veteran, Jerebko owns career averages of 6.2 points on 45.7 percent shooting from the field and 36.3 percent from beyond the arc, 4.0 rebounds and 18.0 minutes in 562 games (113 starts) with the Jazz (2017-18), Boston Celtics (2015-17) and Detroit Pistons (2009-15).

A native of Sweden, Jerebko has appeared in 32 postseason contests (four starts) with Utah and Boston, averaging 4.0 points and 3.1 rebounds in 13.7 minutes per game. He competed with Sweden at EuroBasket 2013, averaging 16.0 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists in five games.

The forward was selected by the Detroit Pistons with the 39th overall pick in the second round of the 2009 NBA Draft. He earned All-NBA Rookie Second Team honors in 2009-10 and was recognized as the Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month in February.

Jerebko will wear #21 for the Warriors.

Warriors sign DeMarcus Cousins

The Warriors yesterday signed free agent center DeMarcus Cousins to what has been reported as a one-year deal for around $5.3 million.

Cousins is still healing from injury and will likely miss the first few months of the 2018-19 season. This signing is huge for the Warriors, even if he’s only able to contribute in limited fashion. At worst, he should be able to do big things off the bench for the Warriors, especially during the playoffs. At best, he’ll play like his former self and make the Warriors even more unstoppable.

Cousins, 27, averaged 25.2 points and career highs of 12.9 rebounds and 5.4 assists to go with 1.65 steals, 1.58 blocks and 36.2 minutes in 48 games (all starts) with New Orleans before suffering a left Achilles rupture on January 26 vs. Houston. Cousins, who earned his fourth-straight All-Star appearance in 2017-18, was one of just three players to average at least 25 points and 10 rebounds per game, along with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Anthony Davis, and was the only player in the league to also average at least five assists per contest.

An eight-year NBA veteran, Cousins owns career averages of 21.5 points, 11.0 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.43 steals and 1.22 blocks in 32.3 minutes over 535 games (513 starts) with the Pelicans (2017-18) and Sacramento Kings (2010-17). Originally selected by the Kings with the fifth overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, the 6’11” center spent his first six-plus seasons with the franchise and ranks near the top on several of the team’s Sacramento-era (since 1985-86) statistical leaderboards, including first in rebounds (5,056), second in points (9,894), second in blocks (558), third in steals (661), fourth in minutes played (14,997) and fifth in games played (470). Cousins was named to the All-Rookie First Team in 2010-11 and to the All-NBA Second Team in both 2014-15 and 2015-16.

A native of Mobile, Ala., Cousins has helped the USA Men’s Basketball Team to gold medals at the 2014 FIBA World Cup, alongside Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, and at the 2016 Olympic Games alongside Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Thompson. In his lone collegiate season at the University of Kentucky in 2009-10, Cousins led the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight and garnered Associated Press First Team and John R. Wooden All-American honors.

Patrick McCaw now a restricted free agent

Free agency is approaching. Many players and teams have major decisions to make. One is a team responsibility — deciding whether to extend qualifying offers to players or letting them enter unrestricted free agency. Here’s the Mercury News reporting on the Warriors:

The Warriors took an expected step in providing clarity to their bench, extending reserve guard/forward Patrick McCaw with a $1.641 million qualifying offer that will make him a restricted free agent.

By making McCaw a restricted free agent, the Warriors have the right to match any offer he receives from other teams. Although McCaw would love to maximize his earnings, he also has said he would love to remain with the Warriors because of their recent championship success and how they have developed him.

Full article

Stephen Curry names a favorite food truck

It’s the offseason. Which means focusing on basketball things like the draft, free agency, summer league and more, but also fun stuff like… food trucks that NBA players enjoy. Here’s the SF Chronicle reporting on Warriors star Stephen Curry and one place he likes to grab a bite from:

Ayesha Curry may be known for her sit-down San Francisco restaurant, but when the Curry family eats out, they certainly love a food truck.

In his new YouTube series “Five Minutes From Home,” Stephen Curry took YouTube star Rudy Mancuso — you might recognize him as the guy in Curry’s Brita commercial — to “one of the best food trucks in Oakland.” The pair hopped in a Sprinter van to Scotch Bonnet, a Jamaican food truck that makes stops all around the Bay Area.

Of course, the pair ordered the curry shrimp, with Curry adding an order of their popular beef patties.

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JaVale McGee hopes to stick with Warriors

There have been lots of jokes over the years about some of JaVale McGee’s decision-making on the court. But the fact is, he did some huge things in a supporting role for the Warriors, especially when it mattered most — in the Finals. Here’s ESPN.com reporting that McGee hopes to continue his low-cost winning ways with Golden State:

Free-agent center JaVale McGee told ESPN he wishes to return to the Golden State Warriors and has no desire to relocate.

“I haven’t thought about [another team] mainly because, hopefully, in my mind, I’m a Warrior for the rest of my career,” he said to ESPN on Monday, six days before the free-agency period begins on July 1. “If that happens, it would be a blessing.”

The first half of the 2017-18 season saw the 7-footer receive minimal playing time, including 16 DNPs. But after the All-Star break, head coach Steve Kerr inserted McGee into the starting lineup in place of Zaza Pachulia to try to spark the Warriors, who were struggling by their own standards.

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Draymond Green sits in on Warriors NBA Draft workouts

It’s always interesting learning about a team’s individual draft workout style. What players do at the workout, who they’re working out with, who on the team is in attendance, etc. In the case of the Warriors, do-almost-everything forward Draymond Green sat in yesterday. Here’s NBC Sports Bay Area with more:

The Warriors on Tuesday brought in six more draft hopefuls, who went through drills under the watchful eyes of the five most significant layers of the team.

CEO Joe Lacob was there, as was general manager Bob Myers, assistant GM/chief scout Larry Harris, assistant coach Ron Adams and…forward Draymond Green.

This is a glimpse into the inner workings of the Warriors, a hoops democracy in which every voice is given a chance to be heard.

It’s conceivable, though, that no one’s words carried more weight than those of Green, who continues to prove his value to the franchise goes beyond defending, rebounding, playmaking and scoring.

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Game-used Stephen Curry mouthpiece in auction

Know those Stephen Curry mouthpieces that you see on TV more often than you’d probably like? Well, here’s a golden opportunity to look at one all the time, from the comfort of your own home, with the TV turned off. You can even wear it. Maybe it’ll make you shoot like Steph. It won’t. But maybe it will. It will not. But it could. Anyway, here’s ESPN.com reporting:

Another Stephen Curry game-used mouthguard is going up for sale.

This particular one was used by Curry in Game 4 of the 2018 NBA Finals as the Golden State Warriors completed their sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

It will hit the auction block in California-based firm SCP Auctions’ next sale that begins July 26 and concludes Aug. 11.

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Warriors 2018 NBA Draft goals

The Warriors won the NBA championship again. As fantastic as their starting lineup is, there are always improvements that can be made on the bench. Here’s the San Jose Mercury News reporting on Golden State’s 2018 NBA Draft needs/goals:

For the first time in the Steve Kerr era, the Warriors need to draft a player that can contribute right away, preferably at the wing position. The need is there because the Warriors need cheap players to fill out a roster that is already over the salary cap with eight players (not including Kevin Durant) and they want to add more youth to the roster, with the draft being the most direct way to do that.

“It’s been four years of our major core playing a lot of minutes, so the idea of having some youth that could step on the floor and give us some good minutes is appealing,” Warriors general manager Bob Myers said Tuesday.

And while Myers said that the Warriors would select the best player available with the No. 28 pick in the first round, that’s window-dressing. They want a wing — any size will work — that’s preferably an upperclassman (they’re more likely to be able to contribute) right away.

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Steve Kerr expects contract extension talks to go smoothly

Head coach Steve Kerr is obviously having great success with his star-filled Warriors team. There’s no reason to even think that the two sides won’t continue together. Here’s the SF Chronicle with the latest on upcoming contract extension talks between the two sides:

“We’ll get that done pretty quickly,” Kerr said Monday. “I don’t think there will be much to it. It should happen relatively quickly.”

Kerr and Golden State began to discuss an extension last summer, but Kerr opted to wait a year for final discussions to be sure he was healthy enough to make a long-term commitment. Now, after coaching every game in the Warriors’ run to the 2017-18 NBA championship, Kerr is ready to sign an extension.

“Whenever he wants to start, we’ll figure it out,” general manager Bob Myers said. “I think the nice thing is we developed a camaraderie and we feel like he wants to be here. We want him here. We’ll work it out.”

Kerr, 52, rebuffed an offer from the Knicks in May 2014 and signed a five-year, $25 million contract with the Warriors.