Warriors Should Target 6'7" Wing Timberwolves Released

The Golden State Warriors have one open roster spot, and ideally they'd fill it with a wing who is at least 6'6".

So when one becomes available, the Warriors should do their due diligence.

Johnny Juzang had been playing on a two-way contract for the Timberwolves all season. He was a candidate to fill their final roster spot, but they released him Wednesday.

Juzang is in his fourth season. The 6'7" shooting guard/small forward is averaging just 4.2 minutes and 2.0 points this season, but his averages over the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons were 19.5 minutes, 8.5 points and 38.4 percent three-point shooting.

Juzang Might Be Warriors' Best Wing Option

As a team over the first apron, the Warriors have a significant buyout market restriction. They can't sign a player who was making $14.1 million before being bought out or released.

That means Klay Thompson, DeMar DeRozan, Khris Middleton and Bogdan Bogdanovic can't become Warriors this season even if they get bought out or released.

I've been speculating that the Warriors should wait to see what happens with the Clippers. They could be looking to buy out Nicolas Batum and/or Bogdanovic with the intent to get below the luxury tax line.

But keep in mind that Batum has a valuable $5.9 team option for next season. The Clippers might want to keep him to have more options on the offseason trade market.

Even if they release him, he's nowhere near guaranteed to end up with the Warriors. The Spurs, Nuggets, Rockets and Timberwolves could have interest in him.

Outside of the Batum fantasy, the Warriors might have no decent option. At 6'5", Lonzo Ball is a bit small to guard big wings, but more importantly, it's hard to play someone shooting 30.1 percent from the field.

Georges Niang (foot) has yet to play this season. It's not clear if Matisse Thybulle will be bought out, but even if he is, he hasn't played since October due to thumb and knee injuries.

The Warriors could hope a hybrid forward like Kyle Anderson or a low-post scorer like Marvin Bagley III becomes available, but they should be looking for a wing after Jimmy Butler's season-ending ACL tear.

How Juzang Would Fit

Juzang isn't known for being a rugged defender, but being 6'7" allows him to play more effective help-side low-man defense than many Warriors who are often forced into doing so due to the team's overall lack of size.

At the moment, the Warriors have just two healthy players on standard contracts who can accurately be described as wings. Moses Moody is their traditional three-and-D wing. At 6'5", he's still a bit small when having to guard bigger wings, but overall he does a nice job guarding a variety of wings and guards.

Gui Santos is Golden State's other wing. At 6'7", he can guard bigger wings. Steve Kerr said he'll continue to start Santos when the Warriors are fully healthy, which makes sense, but Santos probably won't play more than 30 minutes per game.

So Juzang would get some playing time spelling Moody and Santos.

Offensively, Juzang is mostly a three-point specialist, but he does have some offensive talent that he doesn't tap into much. As he showed in his two seasons at UCLA, he can score inside the arc in a variety of ways.

The fact that the Timberwolves don't want him doesn't mean he's lacking value. The Wolves have a deep pool of rangy wings that the Warriors don't have.

In his three seasons with the Jazz (2022-23 to 2024-25), Juzang proved he belongs in the NBA. The Warriors should have him near the top of their list of candidates for their final roster spot.