Warriors Have 2 Roster Dilemmas After 3 Santa Cruz Players Have Monster Game

On the same day the Golden State Warriors came back for a dramatic win against the Denver Nuggets, the Santa Cruz Warriors had three players post monster stat lines in a G League win.

The headliner is Nate Williams, who had 29 points on 12-of-19 shooting (3-of-4 from three) in his Santa Cruz debut. The 6'5" wing is on a two-way contract with Golden State.

Marques Bolden had eight threes en route to 30 points. The 6'10" center is not eligible for a two-way contract, so Golden State would have to give him a 10-day contract or a rest-of-season contract to have him play for the NBA team.

Deivon Smith had a triple-double with 16 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists. The 6'0" point guard was acquired in a G League trade with the Hawks two weeks ago, and since then he's played three games. He combined for 58 points and 14 assists in his first two Sea Dubs games.

Smith is eligible for a two-way contract, but the Warriors don't have a two-way spot available. They are occupied by LJ Cryer, Malevy Leons and Williams.

Should Golden State Give Bolden a Rest-of-Season Contract?

Bolden is good enough to be on an NBA roster, and Golden State has an open roster spot.

Blue Man Hoop's Peter O'Keefe suggested that the Warriors give him a 10-day contract while they are short-handed and with a back-to-back coming up on Tuesday and Wednesday.

That's a good idea, but eventually the Warriors should give someone a standard contract for the rest of the season, and Bolden is not the best choice for that.

The issue is the Warriors already have three stretch 5s. They have six back-to-backs left, so Bolden could be useful in those six games Al Horford misses, but if Kristaps Porzingis and Quinten Post are healthy for those Horford absences, Bolden might not play at all.

The Warriors should be looking for wing depth on the buyout/free-agent market before giving Bolden a rest-of-season contract.

Of course, the longer the Warriors wait, the more likely it is another team signs Bolden to a standard contract. But the Warriors should be willing to let that happen, as he's 27 years old and not likely to pop in the NBA.

Should Golden State Protect Smith with a Two-Way Contract?

If the Warriors had four two-way roster spots, I'm confident they'd give one to Smith right now. But if they have just three, and there isn't an obvious solution to clear a spot for Smith.

Of course, they could release Cryer, Leons or Williams to give Smith a spot.

Williams is the most valuable of the three. There's a real chance he helps Golden State down the stretch by providing wing depth off the bench.

Cryer and Leons are signed to two-year, two-way contracts. Leons is the least NBA-ready, but as a 6'9" wing, he has more potential to fill an important role for the Warriors next season than Cryer or Smith.

At 6'0", Cryer is the same height as Smith. Cryer is not a pure point guard like Smith is, but he's a much better shooter. Cryer leads the G League in three-point percentage at 54.9.

So it probably comes down to Cryer vs. Smith for the last two-way spot. If the Warriors like Smith more than Cryer, they should replace Cryer with Smith ASAP. The longer they wait, the more likely it is that another team uses a two-way spot on Smith.