Player reviews begin with Bowman
With the Warriors’ 201920 season officially done, The Chronicle is reviewing how each player fared.
Ky Bowman spent much of his rookie season living in a teamprovided hotel room near Chase Center. Though he appreciated not having to pay exorbitant rent in San Francisco, he yearned for a measure of stability.
Now, as he enters his second season with the Warriors, Bowman still has plenty to prove before he carves out a longterm role in the NBA. Some of the unflattering labels that plagued him at Boston College — undersized shooting guard, shaky facilitator, questionable decisionmaker — persist as he prepares to compete for a 15man roster spot on Golden State’s 202021 roster.
This is the result of a frustrating end to the season for someone who had opened his NBA career as a bit of a revelation. After going undrafted last June, Bowman signed a twoway contract with the Warriors, only to be quickly forced into Golden State’s rotation because of a rash of injuries.
His slashing ability, toughness and willingness to defend full court made him somewhat of a fan favorite. By late November, some within the Warriors’ organization were beginning to think that Bowman could be the team’s backup point guard of the future. The problem was that, as he neared the 45day limit with Golden State allotted under his twoway contract, he needed to spend extended time in the G League.
Shuttling between San Francisco and Santa Cruz made it tough for Bowman to find much of a rhythm. Though he tried to study defenses and master kicking out to open shooters in the G League, he appeared more cautious during his NBA stints. Unsure of when his next opportunity would come, Bowman tended to overthink on offense, recording nearly as many turnovers as assists in February and March.
Over his final 15 NBA games, he shot 4for32 (12.5%) from 3point range. Head coach Steve Kerr lost enough confidence in Bowman’s facilitating that he began to start Jordan Poole, a catchandshoot specialist in college, at point guard.
This leaves Bowman in precarious territory. Though he had his twoway contract converted to a standard NBA deal after the trade deadline, his contract is nonguaranteed for the next two seasons. The Warriors are free to waive Bowman at no cost anytime before July 15, 2021.
Offseason outlook: Given that
Bowman’s contract is nonguaranteed, he must compete for a place on next season’s roster. This is no easy task. The Warriors already have filled 10 of their 15 spots for 202021, and at least a few more will be used on draft picks and freeagency acquisitions.
Bowman, guard Mychal Mulder and forward Juan ToscanoAnderson, all of whom are on nonguaranteed contracts for next season, will be vying for one or two spots. Whether Bowman makes the cut could come down to roster needs. If Bowman can improve his decisionmaking during minicamp next month, he’ll buoy his chances of securing a backup point guard job.
It’s also possible that Golden State waives him this offseason and tries to bring him back on another twoway contract. But after finally landing a standard deal in February, Bowman might prefer to compete for a 15man roster spot elsewhere under that scenario.