Golden State Warriors Blog – Page 55 – NBA Blog

Andre Iguodala will join Golden State Warriors

The Nuggets are in Plan B mode.

Their top target this offseason was their own free agent, Andre Iguodala. But the swingman decided Friday to play for the Golden State Warriors, two NBA sources confirmed.

Iguodala accepted a four-year contract that will pay him $48 million. He can’t officially sign with Golden State until Wednesday.

The Nuggets are left without their most versatile player and best perimeter defender. It’s been a difficult couple of months for the franchise, which has suffered significant losses in the front office and now on the court…

Iguodala has been enamored with the Warriors for a while. When the Nuggets weren’t able to secure his services for days after the Sacramento Kings offered, then rescinded, a four-year contract worth $14 million annually, his exit from Denver seemed inevitable.

According to one source, the Nuggets offered Iguodala a five-year contract worth $60 million — with $52 million guaranteed. That’s right, the Nuggets presented a more lucrative offer than did Golden State. Yet the Warriors beat the Nuggets again.

Reported by Christopher Dempsey and Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post

Warriors will land Andre Iguodala

The Warriors have been informed by Dwight Howard he will not be joining Golden State, according to a team source.

According to USA Today, Howard has chosen to leave the Los Angeles Lakers to become a Houston Rocket.

The Warriors emerged from long shot to viable option after meeting with Howard on Monday. But despite adding swingman Andre Iguodala, Howard chose to pair up with All-NBA guard James Harden to become the next great center for the Rockets. Houston can offer the same four-year, $88 million contract the Warriors could offer but Texas doesn’t have state taxes, which means Howard can keep more of his money.

That means Golden State will keep starting center Andrew Bogut.

About an hour before this news, the Warriors have reached a four-year deal worth $48 million with Iguodala, multiple sources confirmed.

The Warriors cleared the cap space needed by trading the expiring contracts of Andris Biedrins, Richard Jefferson and Brandon Rush to Utah. The deal also included multiple picks, including the Warriors’ 2014 first-rounder.

Reported by Marcus Thompson II of the Bay Area News Group

Warriors trying to dump salaries to get Dwight Howard

The Golden State Warriors must believe they have a realistic chance of landing free agent Dwight Howard, because they are trying to dump contracts to have enough cap space to sign Howard, ESPN.com reported.

The Warriors would need work out a sign-and-trade deal with the Los Angeles Lakers to acquire Howard.

According to ESPN.com, Golden State is prepared to offer the Lakers Andrew Bogut and his expiring $14 million contract and either Harrison Barnes or Klay Thompson in the deal.

Reported by the Sports Xchange

Carl Landry opts out of contract with Warriors

Power forward Carl Landry has opted out of the final year of his two-year, $8 million deal with the Golden State Warriors to become a free agent.

Landry’s agent, Mark Bartelstein, said Wednesday that his client was coming off a big season and it only made sense for him to hit the open market in hopes of landing a long-term deal. He added that Landry could still return to the Warriors.

The Warriors had expected Landry to become a free agent.

Reported by Antonio Gonzalez of the Associated Press

Mark Jackson fine with current Warriors contract

Mark Jackson is the Zen Don Nelson — similar Warriors success, much less frantic financial agitation.

So: Jackson is not going to scheme for a bigger, longer contract this summer after leading the Warriors to a surprise playoff run, though that’s exactly what Nelson did after the franchise’s previous postseason berth.

If a new deal for Jackson comes before the season starts, then fine.

If it doesn’t (and Jackson said there have been no serious talks as of yet this offseason) … well, Jackson might not be 100 percent thrilled with that, but he almost certainly won’t stage a Nelson-style holdout.

“I’m thrilled to have a job and to coach this group of guys — and with great ownership, a great front office and fan base,” Jackson said from Los Angeles in a phone interview Tuesday.

“I’m a guy with great faith. I know it’ll work out. So I don’t get caught up in it. This isn’t standard ‘coach line.’ It’s the truth. It’ll work out. I do know that.”

The reality is that Jackson is signed through next season, and the Warriors have a team option for 2014-15.

Reported by Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News

Warriors center Festus Ezeli undergoes knee surgery

Golden State Warriors center Festus Ezeli underwent successful surgery yesterday on his right knee, the team announced. The procedure, which was performed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache of the Kerlan-Jobe Clinic in Los Angeles, was necessary to reinforce both the medial collateral ligament and posterior cruciate ligament in Ezeli’s right knee. Ezeli suffered a sprained right knee during the club’s regular-season finale this season at Portland on April 17. He will begin rehabilitation in the near future and is expected to make a complete recovery. The team’s medical staff indicates that recovery time could be a minimum of 6-9 months.

Ezeli, 23, appeared in 78 regular-season games (41 starts) as a rookie this past season, averaging 2.4 points, 4.0 rebounds and 0.95 blocks (4th among NBA rookies) in 14.4 minutes per game. His 41 starts were the most by a Warriors rookie center since Joe Barry Carroll started 80 games in 1980-81 and also marked the second-most starts amongst NBA rookies this season – trailing only teammate Harrison Barnes (81).

Originally selected by Golden State with the 30th overall pick of the 2012 NBA Draft, the 6’11” center appeared in 12 playoff games, averaging 2.0 points and 2.5 rebounds in 11.2 minutes per contest.

David Lee undergoes surgery for hip flexor

Golden State Warriors forward David Lee underwent successful surgery this morning to address a torn right hip flexor, the team announced. Following the procedure, which was performed by Dr. William Meyers at the Vincera Institute in Philadelphia, Lee is expected to begin rehabilitation in the next 10-14 days.

Lee, 30, suffered the injury in Game 1 of the Warriors’ First Round playoff series against the Denver Nuggets on April 20, 2013. After missing the next four games, Lee returned to action to play one minute, 27 seconds in Game 6, the final game of the First Round series, as Golden State defeated Denver 4-2. In the Conference Semifinals against San Antonio, Lee did not play in either of the first two games, but appeared in each of the final four contests of the series, finishing the 2013 Playoffs with averages of 5.0 points and 4.7 rebounds in 10.9 minutes over six games.

During the regular season, Lee appeared in 79 games, averaging 18.5 points (15th in NBA), 11.2 rebounds (T-4th), 3.5 assists and 36.8 minutes (15th) per contest, while shooting 51.9 percent (21st) from the field. For his efforts, the 6’9” forward earned Third Team All-NBA honors, becoming the first Warriors player to earn such accolades since Latrell Sprewell was a First Team selection in 1993-94.

Captivating season gives Warriors hope for future

Rookie forward Draymond Green walked out of Golden State’s practice facility Friday holding a yellow ”We Are Warriors” shirt, taking home the small souvenir to savor the team’s captivating playoff run.

Even though the season ended so painfully, the Warriors will carry more positive memories from the 2012-13 campaign than they ever imagined back in training camp. No banner will be raised and no rings will be awarded, but there was a sense of accomplishment all around.

”The expectations for us this year, we exceeded all of them plus way more,” Green said.

The Warriors overcame injury setbacks all season to earn a rare playoff berth, pulled off a first-round upset against Denver and pushed the four-time champion San Antonio Spurs to six games in the Western Conference semifinals. The franchise won more postseason games than it had in 36 years and might be on the brink of something even more special.

If Stephen Curry and Andrew Bogut can find a way to stay healthy, the Warriors believe they can be a major championship contender in the coming years.

— Reported by Antonio Gonzalez of the Associated Press

Spurs eliminate Warriors from NBA playoffs in six games

Slow at the start of the series and strong at the end, the San Antonio Spurs wore out the Golden State Warriors the way they have so many other opponents.

Tim Duncan had 19 points and six rebounds, Kawhi Leonard added 16 points and 10 rebounds and the Spurs held off a furious final rally to beat the Warriors 94-82 in Game 6 on Thursday night and advance to the Western Conference finals.

”They’ve got great character. They’re competitive. They know there’s not a million chances to do this sort of thing. They wanted it,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said of his squad.

Tony Parker shook off a poor start to score 10 of his 13 points in the fourth quarter and Tiago Splitter added a career-playoff high 14 points for San Antonio, which had a 13-point lead in the third quarter dissolve to two in the final minutes.

Stephen Curry shot 10 of 25 from the floor to score 22 points on a nagging left ankle, and Jarrett Jack had 15 points as the injury-saddled Warriors finally tired. Rookie forward Harrison Barnes also suffered a head injury in the second quarter, returned in the third and was sidelined in the fourth with a headache.

The Spurs outshot Golden State 45 percent to 39 percent and outrebounded them 46 to 40.

Second-seeded San Antonio will open the conference finals at home against Memphis on Sunday. The fifth-seeded Grizzlies eliminated Oklahoma City in five games…

Klay Thompson, who had 10 points on 4-for-12 shooting, made a 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter that sliced San Antonio’s lead to three. Then Curry’s pull-up jumper brought the Warriors within 77-75 with 4:52 to play.

— Reported by Antonio Gonzalez of the Associated Press

Harrison Barnes gets six stitches in Spurs-Warriors Game 6

Golden State Warriors rookie forward Harrison Barnes needed six stitches to close a cut above his right eye after a hard fall in the second quarter of a playoff game against San Antonio on Thursday night.

Barnes fell hard to the court after leaping to contest a drive from Boris Diaw. After a few minutes on the ground, Barnes was led back to the locker room. Barnes got the stitches at halftime and returned to the court to a loud ovation just before the start of the third quarter.

— Reported by the Associated Press