Alen Smailagić
In the second round of the 2020 NBA Draft, the Golden State Warriors brought in two power forwards.
Of those two, it was Eric Paschall that solidified a role on the team next season. Alen Smailagic, who spent most of the season injured, wasn’t involved with a roster he could’ve seen big-time minutes on.
The 19-year-old Smailagic spent some time with the Warriors G-League affiliate before being taken in the draft. In his rookie season, Smiley, as he’s also known, averaged 4.2 points and 1.9 rebounds in 9.9 minutes per game, playing in a mere 14 games.
Smiley has potential, and the Warriors clearly view him as a player that could develop well on their second unit. However, the team may not have much use for him with the development of Eric Paschall, a young player that’ll take most of the backup power forward minutes.
His hustle and energy have already made him a fan favorite, but given their lack of needs for power forward, they could move on. He’s only costing them just over a million dollars next season so it’d be pretty easy to find the second-year player a new home.