San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
From underdog to valued contributor
Editor’s note: The Chronicle is reviewing the 201819 season of each Warriors player.
Warriors guard Quinn Cook’s underdog story — from the G League to a guaranteed roster spot on a dynastic NBA team — has made him a role model for pro basketball’s striving class. But for his tale to leave a lasting imprint, he must stick around.
That was Cook’s goal entering his second season with the Warriors. After impressing enough while Stephen Curry was injured in 201718 to get his twoway contract converted to a guaranteed one, Cook wanted to show that he warrants a longterm NBA role.
Part of making that case has little to do with basketball. Last season, Cook continued to show he’s the quintessential lockerroom guy, offering a sounding board for friend Kevin Durant and lightening the mood with welltimed jokes.
As his playing time fluctuated, Cook tried to stay ready with postpractice games of 3on3, latenight jumpers in the team facility and extra miles on the treadmill. Fleeting
with the Warriors three years ago. Thompson will reportedly join the meeting via FaceTime. Draymond Green already made his pitch to Durant during a visit to New York earlier this month.
If Durant leaves Golden State, he’ll do so to establish a legacy as the greatest player of his generation. Can Curry, Myers and Thompson sell Durant on staying to continue their dynasty?
Durant’s return would ensure that this golden era in Bay Area basketball would be paused, not over. There is little reason to doubt that, once Durant and Thompson are healthy in 202021, the Warriors could reemerge as title favorites.
Golden State plans to offer Durant a fiveyear supermax contract worth $221 million. No other team can offer him more than a fouryear, $164 million deal. The chance for Durant to earn roughly $50 million in 202324, at the age of 35, could be significant for someone currently rehabbing an Achilles injury.
But Durant’s decision won’t come down to money, according to league sources. If he chooses to resign with the Warriors, he will do so because he believes that’s where he’ll be happiest longterm.
Golden State is bracing for Durant’s decisionmaking process to linger well into next week.
2a. Try to orchestrate a Durant signandtrade.
If Durant decides to leave, the Warriors will look into engineering a signandtrade with whichever team Durant plans to join. This wouldn’t affect Durant’s contract or his next team’s cap space, but it would give Golden State the largest trade exception in NBA history.
The Warriors could use that to help replace Durant. They could also wait to use that exception to add salary at the trade deadline or even next summer. Regardless, the money created from a trade exception would be a key asset for a team facing heavy constraints to add talent.
To entice Durant’s next team into a signandtrade, Golden State would almost definitely need to give up future draft picks. That would be a small price to pay for a trade exception of this magnitude.
2b. Apply for a disabled player exception for Durant.
If Durant resigns with the Warriors, they will try to secure a disabled player exception projected at roughly $9.2 million. For Golden State to qualify for that, an NBAdesignated physician must rule that Durant is unlikely to play through June 15, 2020 — a plausible timeline given that Durant tore his right Achilles tendon June 10 and recoveries for such injuries typically take nine to 12 months.
The Warriors could use the disabled player exception to sign a player to a oneyear contract or trade for someone in the final year of his contract. That would be significant, given that Golden State is in line to round out its roster with only the $5.7 million taxpayer midlevel exception and minimum contracts.
3. Decide what to do with Shaun Livingston.
Livingston’s $7.7 million contract for next season was supposed to become fully guaranteed Sunday, but he pushed the deadline for it to become guaranteed until July 10. This gives the Warriors a weekplus to focus on Durant’s situation before they decide what to do with Livingston.
Only $2 million of the $7.7 million in Livingston’s contract for next season is currently guaranteed. With the Warriors staring down a 201920 payroll potentially north of $375 million, they might not want to endure that $5.7 million hit for a backup point guard with nagging knee pain.
If Golden State decides not to keep Livingston, it could waive him before the July 10 deadline or package him in a trade. Moving Livingston might make the most sense. In addition to ensuring that the Warriors wouldn’t have to pay the guaranteed portion of Livingston’s contract, a trade would help them replace Thompson or Durant — that is, if Livingston’s guarantee is increased.
Only the guaranteed portion of Livingston’s salary counts toward a trade because his contract was signed after the latest collective bargaining agreement took effect. Just as the Lakers did with Jemerrio Jones to expand the Anthony Davis trade to three teams, the Warriors could increase Livingston’s guarantee to bring back a rotationcaliber player.
4. Resign Kevon Looney. Outside of Thompson and Durant, Looney is the Warriors’ most important free agent. Damian Jones is Golden State’s only center under contract for 201920. In emerging as the Warriors’ most reliable big man last season, Looney showed he can be a longterm staple of the frontcourt rotation.
Head coach Steve Kerr has gone out of his way multiple times to call Looney a franchise cornerstone and lobby to sign him to a lengthy deal. Though there should be considerable interest in free agency for a 23yearold center as reliable as Looney, Golden State can match any offer for him because it has his Bird rights.
Looney is expected to command offers in the $4 million to $7 million range. Even if the offers get closer to $10 million, the Warriors won’t hesitate to work something out.
5. Decide whether it’s worth trying to resign DeMarcus Cousins.
The Warriors can offer Cousins no more than $6.36 million for next season, which is probably below his market value. But before Golden State waits to see the kind of offers Cousins lands in free agency, it must figure out whether it even wants him back. Cousins was an awkward fit, at best, in the Warriors’
motion offense. Although Cousins would provide Golden State a muchneeded scoring punch next season while Thompson — and, if on the roster, Durant — are out with injuries, Golden State might be better served signing a more defensiveoriented center.
The Knicks are reportedly preparing to offer Cousins a lucrative oneyear contract if they can’t sign Durant. After making $5.3 million last season, Cousins might want to go for the most guaranteed money.
6. Choose which role players to resign. Although Durant, Thompson, Looney, Livingston and Cousins have received the bulk of the attention, the Warriors have five other players they could bring back — several of whom they’ve already made decisions on:
Jordan Bell: The Warriors have tendered Bell a $1.8 million qualifying offer, making him a restricted free agent. Bell has struggled with maturity issues and inconsistency in his two seasons with Golden State, but his blend of strength and athleticism should command interest from other teams. Don’t expect the Warriors to get into a bidding war to keep Bell.
Andrew Bogut: Bogut has returned to Australia, where he’ll honor the second year of his twoyear deal with the National Basketball League’s Sydney Kings. He’d be open to returning to Golden State next season if the team wants to bring him back in March for another playoff run.
Quinn Cook: The Warriors have tendered Cook a $1.9 million qualifying offer and made him a restricted free agent. Unless another team makes Cook a ridiculous offer, expect him to be back with Golden State next season. The Warriors need his floorspacing ability while Thompson recovers from his ACL injury.
Jonas Jerebko: The Warriors aren’t expected to resign Jerebko, opting instead to give his spot to a younger wing with more upside.
Alfonzo McKinnie: The Warriors are expected to pick up their $1.4 million, nonguaranteed team option on McKinnie for next season. Given all the uncertainty among its wing players, Golden State might need him to play big minutes.
7. Maximize the taxpayer midlevel exception.
Unless the Warriors get the disabled player exception, they will have to replace as many as three starting positions — shooting guard, small forward and center — using only the $5.7 million taxpayer midlevel exception and minimum contracts. A year ago, Golden State sent shock waves through the NBA by signing Cousins to the midlevel. Can it pull off another stunner?
That’s unlikely, given that there aren’t any free agents with the set of circumstances that landed Cousins — midway through rehabbing an Achilles injury — with the Warriors. Some of the bestcasescenario options available include Spurs forward Rudy Gay, Wizards forward Trevor Ariza, Magic guard Terrence Ross and Raptors guard Danny Green.
8. Round out the roster on minimum contracts.
The Warriors must find value on minimum contracts, which is no easy proposition. Will the allure of Golden State be enough for a proven player or two to take far less than his market value?
It worked a few years ago with David West. A similar signing would be big for a team with a number of holes to plug and no salarycap space.