Golden State Warriors Assign Three Players To G League On Thursday
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Following their loss on the road against the Utah Jazz on Wednesday night, the Golden State Warriors announced on Thursday that they have sent three players back down to the Santa Cruz Warriors in the G League.
WARRIORS PR: “Warriors assign Patrick Baldwin Jr., Ryan Rollins & James Wiseman to Santa Cruz:”
Rookies Patrick Baldwin Jr. and Ryan Rollins have gone back-and-forth between the G League and the NBA all season long and James Wiseman has recently spent a chunk of time in Santa Cruz working on his game after falling out of the Warriors’ rotation.
On November 15, Wiseman was sent to the G League for the first time and while many viewed this as a “demotion” for the recent second overall pick, James Wiseman and Golden State viewed this as an opportunity for him to not only work on his skill, but his maturity as well.
Since being drafted second overall in 2020, Wiseman has dealt with a meniscus injury and multiple setbacks that forced him to miss chunks of time during the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons.
No timeframe has been laid out from the Warriors in regards to how long Wiseman will spend in the G League, but head coach Steve Kerr has stated that everything he has seen from the young center is “really positive stuff.”
Golden State has one of the best developmental teams in the league and while it is uncommon to see a player drafted as high as James Wiseman was in the G League, the Warriors made a similar decision with Jordan Poole during the 2020-21 season and his time with Santa Cruz ended up being the best thing to happen to him in his young career.
Poole ended up proving to be a key part of the Warriors’ championship success a season ago and recently put pen to paper on a new four-year, $140 million deal as a result.
Having just one more year left on his rookie contract, this is an important year for James Wiseman to work on his game, especially since injuries have prevented him from playing a lot at the NBA level.
Getting the teaching and instruction he needs in the G League and being able to see added reps every single day puts him in the perfect position to grow. The Warriors have not said when James Wiseman and their two rookies in Baldwin Jr. and Rollins will return to the NBA roster.
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