Warriors to honor Omri Casspi with a ring before Monday’s game vs. Memphis

Though he did not play a single minute with the Warriors in their NBA playoff run, the Warriors plan to give Omri Casspi a championship ring. The Warriors (9-1) will present Casspi with a ring before Monday’s game at Oracle Arena against the Memphis Grizzlies (5-2), which signed Casspi this past offseason.

The Warriors waived Casspi before the NBA playoffs started, both to create a roster spot for emerging point guard Quinn Cook and because Casspi had missed the previous 10 games with a right ankle injury. In his 11th season, Casspi averaged 5.7 points on 58 percent shooting in 14 minutes through 53 games. But after receiving initial praise for his sharp cutting and teamoriented play, Casspi’s lone season with the Warriors became a disappointment.

The Warriors acquired Casspi on a one-year, veteran’s minimum deal in hopes he could bolster their bench with outside shooting. Instead, Casspi became increasingly reluctant to shoot and averaged a career-low .4 3-point attempts per game. He also missed a combined 27 games because of injuries that included a sprained right ankle (14), a sore lower back (three), a mid back strain (one) and a bruised rib (one) as well as eight healthy scratches.

Meanwhile, the Warriors considered it a priority to add Cook to the playoff roster because of injuries to Stephen Curry (MCL sprain in left knee) and Patrick Mccaw (bruised bone near spine). The Warriors had a flooded frontcourt in Zaza Pachulia, Javale Mcgee, Kevon Looney and Jordan Bell, but Warriors coach Steve Kerr wanted them all available for matchup purposes. It did not help that an MRI showed inflammation in Casspi’s right ankle shortly before the Warriors waived him on April 8.

Despite Casspi’s limited role, the Warriors still wanted to honor him with a championship ring for his efforts during the regular season. The logic also falls into the Warriors’ “Strength in Numbers” philosophy, pinning success on role players and behind-thescenes personnel as just as important as their Allstar laden talent.