The Golden State Warriors signing Damion Lee is mutually beneficial

The Golden State Warriors and Damion Lee have agreed to a two-way contract. Looking ahead to the season, the agreement works best for both parties.

As cap space began to dwindle and the NBA Free Agency frenzy winds down, many wondered what would be the future of Damion Lee. The 6’6 shooting guard appeared in 32 games last season with the Golden State Warriors.

During his brief playing time, Lee averaged 4.9 points per game and shot 39.7 percent from beyond the arc.

Minimal regular-season appearances eventually transitioned to an absence in the postseason, where Damion Lee regularly observed from the bench.

Interestingly enough, with the resulting injuries to Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson, alongside the lack of shooting present from the bench, Lee’s skillset could have been greatly used in the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors.

Now, as Shams Charania of The Athletic reports, Golden State and Damion Lee have agreed to a two-way contract:

Perhaps it is not the most extravagant signing for the Warriors, but the timing and benefits could not be better for both parties. Golden State is fully embracing the youth movement, and Damion Lee brings a skill set that is needed for the coming season.

For the first time in a while, Golden State is not the presumed favorites and an NBA Finals appearance may not be the realistic goal.

If anything, the Warriors know the upcoming season is meant to assess and survey all options on the roster, with perhaps the best-case scenario being reaching the playoffs in the inaugural year of the Chase Center.

Now with Klay Thompson’s injury, the departure of Kevin Durant, and an influx of new faces, the timing could not be better for Golden State and especially Damion Lee.

The loss in the NBA Finals showed Golden State’s glaring need of depth on the bench.

They sacrificed that in order to assemble perhaps the greatest starting five in NBA history, but now it’s time to look for quality players off the bench. For once in a long time, the regular season matters, and now the Warriors can plug in Damion Lee for significant playing time.

Especially this coming season, Golden State is lacking in viable wing players that can shoot consistently. Damion Lee can potentially fit the bill, and now he can prove it with more than a small sample size to back his case.

For Damion Lee, perhaps at first glance, he sees this as the backup option. He likely was preferring a guaranteed contract, and if that offer took him outside of Golden State than so be it.

But the door for him to get a significant role opened wide with the reshuffling of the roster. Perhaps a two-way contract wasn’t his first option, but the Golden State franchise is one of stability from top-down in recent years.

If he can earn a guaranteed contract, the dividends would be even greater if it meant being with the Golden State Warriors. Golden State is committed to being competitive, has a proven record of success as of late, and has a relationship already with Lee.

It’s the best for both parties, and the hope is that this season will see some breakthroughs for Damion Lee in a Warriors uniform.