SAN FRANCISCO — The battle for the Warriors’ pair of two-way deals got a little more intriguing Thursday morning.
Golden State waived Quinndary Weatherspoon and Lester Quinones, the team announced Thursday morning.
Weatherspoon appeared in four preseason games and averaged 4.5 points, 1.5 rebounds and one assist in 11.2 minutes.
Weatherspoon turned heads last year with his impressive defense against Klay Thompson in Santa Cruz at the Warriors’ G League facility as the star guard worked his way back from a pair of long-term leg injuries. That earned Weatherspoon a 10-day deal, which turned into a two-way opportunity that landed him on the bench throughout the Warriors’ championship run.
Weatherspoon played 11 games with the Warriors last season, spending the rest of his time in Santa Cruz with the Warriors’ G League affiliate.
The move to waive Weatherspoon comes as a surprise. Entering training camp, he seemed the most likely to earn a permanent spot on the roster given his defensive abilities and the way he’s improved his offense.
Quinones played in two preseason games, averaging five points, 1.5 rebounds and one assist in 10 minutes. He signed a two-way deal with the Warriors on draft night after he went undrafted. Before joining Golden State this summer, Quinones played four seasons at Memphis — part of one of those seasons was with James Wiseman.
Quinones could play this season in Santa Cruz to further develop his game.
The moves open up the Warriors’ two-way deals. There are four guys gunning for those positions: Pat Spencer, Ty Jerome, Jerome Robinson and Anthony Lamb.
Spencer, a college lacrosse star-turned-basketball player, has emerged as an unlikely frontrunner with his impressive preseason showings. He’s a scrappy player but can provide a jolt of energy off the bench. In three preseason games, Spencer averaged 5.7 points on 50% shooting and recorded three rebounds and two assists per game.
Another player to watch going forward is Jerome, whom the Warriors added to their training-camp roster after returning from Japan. The 6-foot-5 guard averaged four points on 42.9% shooting in two preseason games.
The Warriors have to trim their roster to 15 by opening night next Tuesday, though there’s a belief that Golden State could leave its final roster spot open for financial reasons. The current roster stands at 18.
Source: www.mercurynews.com