Everything You Need to Know About the Warriors Training Camp Roster
On Tuesday, Sept. 24, the Golden State Warriors 2019 training camp roster was finalized as containing the following 20 players:
Stephen Curry
D’Angelo Russell
Klay Thompson
Draymond Green
Willie Cauley-Stein
Kevon Looney
Jacob Evans III
Alec Burks
Alfonzo McKinnie
Eric Paschall
Jordan Poole
Glenn Robinson III
Omari Spellman
Alen Smailagić
Ky Bowman
Damion Lee
Devyn Marble
Juan Toscano-Anderson
Andrew Harrison
Marquise Chriss
Here’s your unofficial guide to those 20 players, categorized into the roles they will likely fill within the roster.
The Sure Things: Curry, Thompson, Green, Looney
We already know what these four players can and will provide. All of them have already played at least four seasons as Warriors, during which time they have found their roles within the team. Curry is arguably the greatest shooter of all time and an elite point guard who leads by example. Green is the team’s primary catalyst on offense and defense as a capable point forward who can guard practically anybody. After a solid 2017-2018 season, Looney experienced a breakout in 2018-2019, serving as a solid rebounder and inside finisher able to defend multiple positions. Although Thompson will miss most or all of the 2019-2020 season with a torn ACL, he gets a spot in this category because it’s clear what he brings when he’s at full strength: elite shooting and lockdown defense of the other team’s best perimeter player.
The New Veterans: Russell, Cauley-Stein, Burks, Robinson
These are the guys who are new to the team but have plenty of NBA experience. Russell was the team’s marquee offseason pickup and provides shooting, ball handling and passing skills that will help to shoulder the offensive burden and take some pressure off of Curry and Green. Cauley-Stein is a solid athlete and rebounder who excels as the big man in pick-and-roll plays. It was revealed on media day however that WCS will miss the entirety of training camp with what Warriors’ GM Bob Myers called a left foot sprain. So for the immediate future, Cauley-Stein will be a question mark in regards to when he’ll return and how long it will take him to get back into game shape. Burks has struggled with injuries throughout his career but is capable of being a solid scorer and shooter off the bench when healthy. Robinson will likely serve in a spot-up shooter role but is also a freak athlete and former Dunk Contest champion.
The Wild Card: McKinnie
McKinnie gets his own category because of the status of his contract. He is still on a non-guaranteed deal, although it is extremely likely that he’ll remain on the roster. After making the team out of training camp last season, he worked his way into the rotation thanks to his athleticism and ability to play both sides of the ball. He’ll almost certainly be an important part of the lineup once again and may even start at small forward.
The Second-Years: Evans, Spellman
Both of these players enter their second NBA season. Evans didn’t play much for the Warriors last year, but will be expected to step up more for the 2019-2020 campaign, likely as a three-and-D type of player. Spellman similarly struggled to get regular NBA minutes as a member of the Atlanta Hawks, but he has an incredible amount of potential. He stands at 6’9” and is athletic, strong, a very good rebounder and a capable shooter. He was Golden State’s most underrated acquisition of the offseason and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him become a standard part of the big man rotation.
The Rookies: Paschall, Poole, Smailagić, Bowman
All four of these players are preparing for their first season of NBA basketball. Of the four, the second-rounder Paschall is probably the most interesting in the context of the Warriors roster. He is undersized at the power forward position at 6’7” but can score, shoot, rebound, defend and even pass a little. In addition, he brings intensity and energy to fire up the team. If this sounds like a certain Warriors star to you, you’re not alone. Multiple scouts have compared him to Draymond Green and he will likely go under Green’s tutelage at various points throughout the year. First-round selection Poole will be used as another shooter off the bench. Second-round pick Smailagić and the undrafted Bowman are likely to spend most of the season in the G League, as the potentially explosive Smailagić needs the development at just 19 years old and Bowman, a good scorer and terrific rebounder at 6’2”, is on a two-way contract.
The Other G Leaguers: Lee, Toscano-Anderson, Marble
These three are likely to spend all or most of 2019-2020 with the Santa Cruz Warriors. Lee appeared in 32 games for the big club last season and proved himself as a solid shooter, but he remains on a two-way contract, meaning the amount of time he can play in the NBA is limited to 45 days. The one exception to this would be if the Golden State Warriors are hit by the injury bug, at which point they could consider giving Lee a full-scale NBA contract. Toscano-Anderson began his professional career in Mexico before joining Santa Cruz in 2018-2019. Marble has appeared in 44 NBA games across two seasons with the Orlando Magic and most recently played in Italy. They are both currently signed to Exhibit 10 contracts, which allow them to make more money if they stay with the Warriors organization rather than sign with a different G League team following the end of camp.
The Unlikely Warriors: Harrison, Chriss
We probably won’t see either of them in a Golden State or Santa Cruz Warriors uniform at any point during the regular season. Both have received non-guaranteed camp-only invites and the only ways either could make the roster is to tear up training camp, at which point the organization would have to make room for them. This would probably mean cutting McKinnie or trading Spellman or Evans. Because this almost certainly won’t happen, Harrison and Chriss will use the opportunity to put in work with NBA-level talent and hope to parlay a strong camp performance into a contract with another team.