The real reason the Golden State Warriors lost their 14th pick 

 

The real reason the Golden State Warriors lost their 14th pick

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – JULY 10: Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr (L) and governor Joe Lacob watch the 2022 NBA Summer League game between the Warriors and the San Antonio Spurs at the Thomas and Mack Center. July 10, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTICE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that by downloading and/or using this photo, User agrees to the terms of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – JULY 10: Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr (L) and Governor Joe Lacob watch the 2022 NBA Summer League game between the Warriors and the San Antonio Spurs at the Thomas and Mack Center. July 10, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTICE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that by downloading and/or using this photo, User agrees to the terms of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

The Golden State Warriors are not about win-win basketball. It’s a claim worth investigating because the Warriors have invested a lot of resources and spent a lot of money in recent years to continue at a high level. This summer was no different, as the Warriors traded Jordan Poole for salary cap space, Chris Paul for an expensive veteran who could help them win this season.

The Warriors have one of the most expensive payrolls in the league and have lived under the luxury tax for the past few seasons. Owner Joe Lacob deserves credit for green-lighting such an expensive team. This season, the Warriors will pay about $41 million on top of the luxury tax, which adds about $188.16 million to the $207.24 million. This is not a team constrained by financial concerns in the grand scheme of things.

But beneath the surface, this is a franchise that also pinches pennies. They took advantage of a new wrinkle in the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and started the season with only 13 players under contract, which they could do up to 14 consecutive days before filling the 14th spot on the roster (which they can do with 14). players). ). more players). days in season).

The Golden State Warriors are trying to save money

Instead of having another player on the roster, the Warriors saved hundreds of thousands of dollars by starting the season with just 13 players. It can be turned around because the front office and coaching staff trust the 13 players they had, and that’s certainly true, but basically it was about saving money. By the end of that 14-day window, the Warriors had to sign a 14th player. At this point, we imagine they could bring back a veteran from training camp, whether it’s Rudy Gay or Rodney McGruder, or sign a veteran in free agency, with Danny Green being a particularly interesting option.

The Warriors went the other way, signing former second-round pick Gui Santos to a semi-guaranteed contract with $75,000 guaranteed and two more over the course of the season.

The 55th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, Santos is 6and#039;8andquot; Brazilian forward who played for Santa Cruz Warriors last season. He averaged 12.7 points, six rebounds and 2.2 assists in the G-League. last season, which are solid but not particularly noteworthy numbers. Why did the Warriors sign Santos? It wasn’t his job to help this season. He is both young and has a long way to go before he is ready to contribute to a winning basketball team. He pitched pretty well in Summer League last July, but he’s not the kind of player Trayce Jackson-Davis has to offer in his first season.

The early season plan seemed to be that the Warriors would stick with Santosand#039; rights, let him play in the G-League again and develop his skills, then consider signing him to a two-way contract next year. So why did the Warriors sign Santos to a full contract?

The answer is to save money. The new CBA added a “second round exception” andquot; which allows the team to sign their second-round pick to a contract longer than the veteran and#039; minimum contract and pay the Warriors less luxury tax. Because they had previously drafted Santos in the second round, he was called up on another waiver and the Warriors were able to sign him for less money than they would have spent on Danny Green or Rudy Gay.

Dan Feldman of Duncand#039;d It was noted that if the Warriors keep Santos for the entire season, the team would save $6,414,812 compared to signing him as a minimum-salary free agent for the same period. A player worth signing up who could theoretically step in and help out if the Warriors are hurt or need a spark.

That doesn’t even include the possibility that the Warriors will waive Santos at the end of the season (due to his light guarantee), allowing him to return to Santa Cruz. They could be without a 14th player for another 14 days and then re-sign Santos (assuming he clears waivers, which he likely will).

 

At first glance, it may seem that there is little here. The Warriors have 13 players they are comfortable with, so the odds of them having to play while their 14th man seems slim. The likelihood that a player signing the minimum contract for two seasons would contribute significantly to the Warriors also seems slim.

But just last year, the Warriors had to rely on two-way players like Ty Jerome and Anthony Lambi to survive due to injuries to several key players.