Two full days into the NBA free-agency moratorium period, the Warriors have reached agreement with two players who don’t register as stars but have the tools to make significant contributions.
The latest came Tuesday, when the Warriors, according to a league source, came to terms with combo forward Kyle Anderson, formerly of the Minnesota Timberwolves. The move first was reported by ESPN.
Anderson joins combo guard De’Anthony Melton, who came to terms Monday, as the first veterans lining up to join Golden State. Anderson plans to sign a three-year contract worth $27 million sometime after the free-agency moratorium period ends on at 9:01 a.m. PDT on Saturday.
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Anderson and Melton fit the mold of veterans coach Steve Kerr can plug into the rotation and expect production. Moreover, they’re solid defenders that possess the high IQ coveted by general manager Mike Dunleavy as Golden State remakes its roster.
“There's a lot of ways to skin a cat, and there's a lot of ways to build a team,” Dunleavy said last week. “You've got to go with what you have and what makes sense building around your group. And that's kind of what we'll look to do.
“I don't think there's one singular way to do it, but there are some good concepts and ideas around it. At the core of it, it's generally good defense, competitiveness, high IQ, toughness.
Anderson, 30, has played key roles on several successful teams. At this stage of his career, he’s a theoretical fit as the Warriors undertake the task of adding enough talent to give team centerpiece Stephen Curry a reasonable chance for another deep playoff run.
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Nicknamed “Slo Mo” for his calculated movement – ponderous but surprisingly effective – Anderson has the skills to fill most any offensive role, from point forward to wing to small-ball center. At 6-foot-9 (with a 7-foot-3 wingspan), he joins Kevon Looney as the tallest veterans on a team seeking height and length.
Anderson’s 3-point shooting is unexceptional (33.8 percent career), but the Warriors have reason to believe he can be better; he shot 22.9 percent beyond the arc last season but 41 percent on higher usage the previous season.
Golden State, which used the nontaxpayer midlevel exception to land Melton and the trade-player exception to add Anderson, continues to explore trade options, according to multiple league sources.
Though the Warriors are doing a nice job of filling needs, they realize they need another high-level scorer to compete in the deeply competitive Western Conference.
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