One-Time Warriors Project, Bay Area Hero Lands With New Club

Getty San Francisco Dons guard Frankie Ferrari handles the ball during a collegiate bout with the Gonzaga Bulldogs.

One of the more memorable stories of the 2021-22 G League season for the Golden State Warriors‘ affiliate, the Sea Dubs, was undoubtedly Bay Area fave Frankie Ferrari. After a run in the Spanish leagues and a brief retirement, the Burlingame product, 2014 Peninsula Athletic League POY and San Francisco Dons alum joined the club and made his presence known in a big, bad way.

In just his third game with Santa Cruz, Ferrari scored 20 points and dished out a whopping 17 assists against the Texas Legends. And that was just one of five double-digit-assist efforts he had over the course of the campaign.

That passing ability — which was also on full display with the Sacramento Kings summer league squad in July — notwithstanding, Ferrari opted to return to Spain for 2022-23.

And now, just a handful of games into the ACB League season, he’s switching teams once again.

Ferrari Heads Back to His (Other) Old Stomping Grounds

After signing with Zaragoza following the conclusion of the G League campaign last year, Ferrari and the club opted to continue their partnership in ’22-23. Just seven games into the season, however, the two sides parted ways, clearing the way for the 26-year-old to sign with BAXI Manresa over the weekend.

This isn’t Ferrari’s first rodeo with Manresa, though.

He previously spent time with the team during the 2019-20 campaign before rejoining it in 2021 after stopovers with Gran Canaria and Unicaja. And one could argue that he played his best pro ball with the club, averaging 12.6 points and 5.8 assists per game while making 38.3% of his three-point attempts across both tenures.

While Ferrari is undoubtedly hoping that his third go-round with Manresa ends up being the best run to date, he’s not exactly moving up in the world of La Liga. The team is currently tied with his old crew, Zaragoza, and Real Betis at the bottom of the league table with matching 1-6 records.

Manresa’s next game — and Ferrari’s likely return — will come on November 20 against Baskonia.

Another Former Warrior Playing Well in Spain

Although Ferrari has decided to switch things up, Dubs fans with an eye on the happenings in Europe still have reason to be keeping tabs on Zaragoza. After all, former Warriors draftee and multi-time summer-league participant Justinian Jessup also signed with the team over the summer.

He’s playing a nice brand of offensive basketball, too.

The 24-year-old — who spent the previous two years with the Illawarra Hawks of the Australian NBL — is averaging 13.1 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game through seven appearances. He’s connecting on 38.1% of his six three-point attempts per contest, too.

Not only that — he’s coming off his best performance of the season. In leading his team to its first win of the year (over Real Madrid), Jessup scored 28 points on 9-of-17 shooting with four triples, six rebounds, three assists and two steals. For his efforts, he was named the league-wide MVP for Matchday 7.

“I am beginning to be more aggressive,” Jessup said after the win. “Don’t be afraid to shoot, try to score. Being more aggressive to look for the shots and that is what will give me the advantages.”