At Golden State Warriors Media Day, Brandin Podziemski spoke about a pair of surgeries he had this summer, but noted that he is feeling good heading into training camp. Podziemski will be a crucial part of the Warriors’ plans this year. Anthony Slater of ESPN revealed the information on Twitter, noting that Podziemski said that he got the all-clear to play again a couple of weeks back.
“Brandin Podziemski had two surgeries this summer,” Slater wrote. “One on his core, one on his wrist. He said he was back on the court August 1st and received full clearance a couple weeks ago.”
Now, Podziemski should be ready to roll.
How important is Brandin Podziemski to Warriors?
The Warriors are going all out this year. They want to win another championship with Stephen Curry at the helm, and they were willing tomake some significant moves this summer in an attempt to chase that goal.
Golden State brought in Al Horford to (presumably) be the starter alongside Draymond Green in the frontcourt. Curry and Jimmy Butler, who the Warriors added at last year’s deadline, will be part of that first five, too. That leaves one spot. And it should be Podziemski’s.
Last season, Podziemski started 33 of the 64 games he appeared in. But this year, he makes the most sense as Curry’s backcourt mate.
The only other players who could have a shot at stealing the role are Moses Moody, De’Anthony Melton, and Gary Payton III, barring something wild happening with the Jonathan Kuminga situation. (Maybe they could run Butler at the two and Kuminga at the three, but that seems a bit silly.)
Moody’s defense and catch-and-shoot three-point shooting would make him a viable candidate, but if Podziemski takes the leap the Warriors likely want him to, he should be the starter.
Having an extra guy in the lineup who can shoot, create, and defend would be a huge advantage for the Warriors, especially someone who already has experience playing next to Curry.
Some nights, Payton could make more sense for defensive purposes. The same can be said for Moody or Melton. But Podziemski should be the guy for Golden State.
He’s one of their best young assets, and they should be consistently investing in his development, despite the fact that they’ll be pushing for a title next year.
Because if all goes according to plan, his surge as a top-tier role player should be able to perfectly coincide with the Warriors' ability to compete for a title with Curry leading the way.