Yeah, CJ was a great story for GS out of the NBDL. He was a terrible defender (he looked good but the results were awful) but he was a clutch scorer and ball-handler at times. It's tough now, however, with Curry and Law in the mix as well. My feeling is they don't match the offer, because every dollar counts right now, and instead they end up finding another CJ in the summer league or NBDL (maybe they bring back DeMarcus Nelson if need be?) I wouldn't mind if they bring him back, but I just don't see it being a priority or GS right now, given the market, the salary cap, and their particular personnel make-up. Better to give Law the back-up minutes and see what he can do. Although I guess it's really hard to know what the PG position looks like until we know whether Speedy will play or not, and what his contract and possible medical exception will look like.
This is the fourth time I heard a Watson today. 1. Sherlock Holmes movie coming this Christmas with Robert Downey Jr as Holmes and Jude Law as "Watson," as in "Elementary my dear, Watson." 2. Earl Watson gets released by the Thunder and likely will sign with Indiana who lost Jarrett Jack. 3. Tom Watson almost pulls of winning the British Open at 59. After next year, he will be too old to be allowed in. 4. The Orlando Magic are close to signing Warrior guard CJ Watson to an offer sheet. We got Stephen Jackson, Stephen Curry, Acie Law, Marco Bellinelli, Speedy Claxton and Monta Ellis at PG, so we need another PG like we need a hole in the head. Watson isn't really a PG even, as he's not a great passer, terrible defender and is more a shoot first PG. So why is Larry Riley saying he wants to re-sign Watson? It should be elementary.
Exactly. We're so overloaded at those positions that it would make zero sense to re-sign him. If Riley does, I will have to take some of those brownie points back.
I totally agree with you. What made CJ Watson a good thing was that we discovered him in the NBDL and got his services for pennies (ala Barnes, Azu, DeMarcus Nelson, even Brian Cardinal). Instead of spending $$ mils to keep it going, we should look for someone else in the NBDL to do that with.
Excellent post. Also as Alley Oop mentioned CJ's only real value was that he was an ok backup that we got without trading, spending draft picks, or signing to a big contract. He was a minimum salary, first year NBA-er that cost us nothing. His main contribution to the team was his shooting. We just drafted Steph Curry who gives us shooting in spades, hes a much better penetrator, defense is probably similar (Curry's got great hands on D though if SL is any indication), hes bigger, got infinitely more potential, probably runs the break better. Additionally we acquired Law and Claxton for added depth at the 1. Law is bigger, better creator for himself and probably even a better creator for others than CJ. Claxton, if healthy, can push the ball extremely well, drop some dimes, play decent defense. Are Law/Claxton better than CJ? I'd say probably not though Law has a chance and Nellie likes him already. But they're both under contract. No point in paying another PG any extra money when hes a marginal upgrade, at best, over the current two backups. Plus Monta, Beli, Jack are all capable (and probably better than CJ, Law, or Clax) of manning the point for stretches. CJ was a nice find for us and I'm proud for GS having discovered him when no one else gave him a chance, but we absolutely do not need him and do not need to spend more money on a mediocre option the PG: we already have two of those under contract. Like I've mentioned before, if we can S&T him and get something back- another decent end of the bench guy, a prospect in need of a change of scenery, a 2nd rounder, a few hundred K of cash, etc. it'd be nice. But there's no point in arbitrarily keeping him just for the sake of keeping him.
The only possible logic I see to signing him is if hes offered a really small contract and Riley thinks he can flip him for value later on. If memory serves there was an article from maybe January of this year where it was said that CJ was one of the most inquired about players when other GMs called our front office. Obviously a lot of teams are lacking at backup PG, lacking shooting, and want such a player who comes at a very inexpensive price. CJ can definitely be that guy. While he isn't a pure PG he is pretty under control, shoots it well, doesn't turn it over a lot, and tries on defense. For many teams, thats all they will ever want out of a backup PG as most are usually backups because they are high TO guys, out of control, etc. The question is will teams even give anything back for him? They only want him because hes uber cheap and presumably we would have traded him already if we weren't demanding anything too valuable back. Another scenario I can see is if we drop Claxton. His twitter said he was healthy and going to play for 09-10. I've read that due to his major injury issues insurance can cover like 80% of his salary. If we cut him and hes able to play somewhere else do we still only have to pay 20% though? Does the insurance only kick in if hes not playing? Do we negotiate a buyout and would he agree to it? Does Nellie even want a PG who can't shoot? He could be a nice pickup for us if he is in fact healthy and still retains his form from his GS/NOH days. That's probably unlikely though.
Basically agree with everyone here in letting Watson go. Orlando is playing a really gutsy move by extending so much past the luxury tax - they're over the $9 million mark in paying back dollar for dollar. Probably $12 million with the Barnes signing (assuming it's for the bi-annual). They might try to move away Redick or Johnson, but that is one serious team, going in a direction the Warriors aren't. On the other hand, Watson's contract must be within the $1-2 million range. So maybe it's in the realm of matching, but there's not much point from a financial point of view. Cohan already has money issues, he's going to be pinching every dollar he can. So, the Warriors will probably go without any FA signings this season. Rumors have them considering going through the season with 13-14 players on their roster, leaving spots open. (We're at 12 right now). As far as Claxton's insurance, he has to be unable to play. Think about it from the insurer's point of view - no way that they are paying out the insurance for someone who's not hurt. Insurance companies value very dollar. If he gets waived, and then plays elsewhere, just like any other player, we have to pay his salary minus the salary that he actually receives. Even if he's cut and proves healthy enough to play, we'll have to pay his contract (unless we reach a buyout) even if he never steps on the floor ever again.
Orlando loves ex-Warrior role players! Now they're going to sign Barnes! http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4342767
CJ was a nice player but he's not going to be the difference between the W's being a contender or not. He has a nice midrange jumper but did not distribute very well and did not penetrate much. Not a great defender either but a good rebounder and team player. Will not lose sleep over this. Good luck CJ though!
