With 14 spots filled and one final roster spot remaining for the Warriors, the Dubs will likely fill that hole with their last remaining need, a backup center. Behind incumbent starter Zaza Pachulia, there is little depth at center for Golden State, with Pachulia as the only true center currently under contract. Damian Jones, David West, Kevon Looney, and Jordan Bell can all play center in smaller lineups, but it would behoove the Warriors to have another true big man to back up Pachulia so the team isn’t stuck constantly playing small-ball.
Here are some center options for Golden State to fill their last roster spot with:
JaVale McGee
The most familiar option for the Warriors is McGee, who took many by surprise last season while putting together an excellent campaign as the Warriors’ primary backup center. McGee had by far the best player efficiency rating of his career (25.2), averaged 6.1 points and 3.2 rebounds per game and shot 65 percent from the floor despite getting limited minutes.
McGee brought boundless energy and athleticism to the floor every game he played and provided a consistent spark for Golden State. Many of the decison-making issues that plagued McGee earlier in his career were covered up by the Warriors, as McGee was given opportunities in the right situations to demonstrate his talents.
However, this reunion is looking less likely after reports that JaVale is unhappy with the amount of money and playing time the Warriors could offer him. It would be easy for Golden State to slot McGee right back into the successful role he had last season, but it certainly isn’t worth bending over backwards to retain him.
Willie Reed
Willie Reed’s NBA journey started later than most. After going undrafted in 2011, Reed signed with Spanish Club Sant Josep, but never played a game for the team. He then spent three seasons in the NBA D-League for various teams and made the D-League First Team and the D-League All-Defensive First-Team in 2015.
Reed’s standout play in the D-League eventually led to his NBA debut in December of 2015 with the Brooklyn Nets. He played last season with the Miami Heat and excelled as a low-post scorer and defensive stopper, averaging 5.3 points and 4.7 rebounds in 14.5 minutes per game.
The 27-year-old was extremely effective when he was on the floor for the Heat, with 13.1 points and 11.6 rebounds per 36 minutes and a player efficiency rating of 17.1. His athleticism and ability to be mobile while guarding opposing bigs would fit perfectly into the Warrior’s system on both ends of the floor.
The only issue with bringing him in would be the cost, as Reed likely will want more than the minimum he’s been paid for the last two seasons. The Dubs would have to try to get him to sign for a small deal with the incentive being that Reed can build his resume on a championship team for an even bigger payday next summer. Doing so would give the Warriors another great bench piece to round out the roster.
Tiago Splitter
If the Warriors want a version of Pachulia that is less physical but who can actually make jump shots, then Splitter should definitely be on their radar. The Brazilian big man is coming off a season with the 76ers marred by a hip surgery and a right calf injury that caused him to play just eight games. Splitter’s history of injuries will surely drive his price tag down and scare away most teams — he’s only played more than 60 games once in his seven year career.
However, Splitter may be worth taking a flier on. The 32-year-old was very effective playing within a high-powered offense with the Spurs where he averaged a career-best 10.3 points and 6.4 rebounds per game back in 2012-13.
If he can continue to work on his outside shot and turn himself into a decent stretch big, to go along with his solid defensive capabilities and deft passing touch, that could be an extremely valuable asset to add to the Warrior’s bench.
Marreese Speights
Another familiar face that could to return to the fold for Golden State is “Mo Buckets” himself, Marreese Speights. Speights had the best season of his career when he played for the Warriors back in 2014-15, averaging a career-high 10.4 points to go along with 4.3 rebounds per game. Speights played with the Clippers last season and averaged similar numbers while putting up a career-best 58 percent true shooting mark.
At times Speights frustrated the Warriors with his decision-making (he averaged more turnovers than assists in all three of his seasons in Oakland) and shot selection but his ability to stretch the floor and be an energizer off the bench was key to the success of the Warriors’ bench during his tenure there.
Speights has been linked to a number of other teams this offseason but his most likely destination seemed to be Atlanta until ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Sunday that contract talks had broken down between the two sides.
Sources: After week-long talks ended w/ Atlanta backing out of offer to Mo Speights, one of market's best shooting centers available again.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 16, 2017
Coming back to the Bay gives Speights an opportunity to be a part of another championship squad and increase his market value for the future. If the Warriors can make it happen they should pull the trigger on signing Mo Buckets.
Tyler Zeller
The older of the two Zeller brothers in the NBA is coming off his worst NBA season statistically, but the numbers are somewhat misleading in this case. Zeller fell out of favor in an extremely deep Celtics rotation and is just two seasons removed from averaging a career high 10.2 points and 5.7 rebounds per game while shooting 54 percent from the floor.
When he did see time on the floor last year, Zeller was a key cog in the Celtics offense, as he assisted on 12.2 percent of his teammates’ field goals and started many fastbreaks by pulling down 13 percent of his team’s defensive rebounds. He won’t wow you with his athleticism or speed, but he has just enough of both to be effective in today’s NBA.
Because of his subpar season, Zeller could certainly come cheap and he would fit right in for the Warriors as a big man who can facilitate in the post, make inside shots, and play solid defense.
Others to consider: Roy Hibbert, Andrew Bogut, Festus Ezeli
