McCaw fine-tuning game in G League

To resuscitate his season, Warriors guard Patrick McCaw is navigating a split existence this weekend: the seemingly constant yo-yoing between the NBA’s best team and its G League affiliate.

After scoring two points in 13 minutes of Golden State’s 121103 win Thursday night over Dallas, he posted 22 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals in the Santa Cruz Warriors’ 105-99 loss Friday night to the Texas Legends. McCaw then made Highway 17’s winding trek across the Santa Cruz Mountains to join Golden State for Saturday evening’s game against San Antonio, a 122-105 Warriors victory.

“I watched his minutes this morning, and I thought he did a good job,” Golden State head coach Steve Kerr said of McCaw’s first G League stint this season. “Good for him to just play big, extended minutes

and kind of let loose offensively.”

The Warriors’ offseason additions of Nick Young and Omri Casspi have made it tricky for McCaw to build off his productive rookie season. Hyper-aware that he shares a court with some of the league’s best scorers, McCaw has had a tough time deciphering when to pass and when to shoot.

His three-point shooting percentage is 24.6, nearly nine percentage points below last season’s clip. McCaw is averaging fewer points than he did as a rookie, in more minutes. After going six games without a point, he asked Kerr last week to send him down to Santa Cruz so he could get his rhythm and confidence back.

The plan is for McCaw to return to the G League for Santa Cruz’s game Sunday against the South Bay Lakers.