Getty Draymond Green #23 of the Golden State Warriors high fives Kent Bazemore #26, Stephen Curry #30 and Juan Toscano-Anderson #95, during the first quarter of a game against the Houston Rockets at the Toyota Center on March 17, 2021.
The Golden State Warriors are bringing in a group of NBA veterans, including former players Kent Bazemore and Juan Toscano-Anderson, for a workout, according to The Athletic.
Bazemore played for the Warriors during the 2020-21 season. Toscano-Anderson, an Oakland native with Mexican heritage, was with the team for two seasons, including their 2021-22 championship run.
Other NBA free agents scheduled to work out for the Warriors are Dion Waiters, Tony Snell, Trey Burke and Harry Giles III.
Currently, Golden State has 13 players under contract and Lester Quiñones on a two-way deal. That means the Warriors have two open roster spots and two available two-way slots. But they are only planning to carry 14 players to next season for financial reasons, according to a The Mercury News report.
Among this group of NBA veterans who will try out, only Giles III is eligible for a two-way contract (eligible players need to have tallied three or fewer years of service), while the rest can only be signed via a standard NBA contract.
Waiters, 31, last played in the NBA during the Orlando Bubble in 2020. He was a member of the Los Angeles Lakers championship team.
Snell played for the Maine Celtics last season in the G League after a brief stint with the New Orleans Pelicans the previous year as part of the CJ McCollum trade.
Trey Burke last played in the NBA with the Dallas Mavericks in 2022. He hooked up with the Stockton Kings in the G League last season.
Cory Joseph Withdraws from FIBA World Cup
Warriors newcomer Cory Joseph has withdrawn from playing in the 2023 FIBA World Cup for Canada due to a back injury, according to SportsNet reporter Michael Grange.
Joseph attended Canada’s training camp before they flew to Germany for their warmup games. But a mutual decision with Canada had been reached as he prepares for his 13th NBA season.
Joseph is expected to provide insurance depth at point guard position for the Warriors behind Stephen Curry and Chris Paul.
Joseph’s back injury that caused him to miss 12 games for the Detroit Pistons last season flared up, according to Grange.
Jonathan Kuminga Eyes Breakout Season
Jonathan Kuminga is looking forward to a breakout year in his third season in the NBA.
“This upcoming season is definitely the year,” the 20-year-old Kuminga told ESPN at the Basketball without Borders camp in South Africa on Friday.
“A lot of people are expecting so much from me – and myself; I’m expecting a lot. It’s a lot of pressure, but I don’t really pay attention to the noise. The pressure is always going to be there. It’s just [on] me to go out there and perform,” he added.
Kuminga averaged 9.9 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 20.8 minutes per game last season. But that is bound to improve with a bigger opportunity to star in the Warriors’ second unit following the departure of Jordan Poole, the team’s scoring leader off the bench last season.
The Warriors selected the 6-foot-7 Kuminga as the seventh overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft.