5 former players that have excelled since leaving the Golden State Warriors

These five players have each improved since their time with the Warriors

New York Knicks v Golden State Warriors
New York Knicks v Golden State Warriors | Ezra Shaw/GettyImages
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2. Justin Holiday

Justin Holiday somehwat surprisingly remains a free agent this offseason, but there's doubt he's carved out a nice career for himself after his lone year -- a championship-winning one -- with the Warriors in 2014-15.

Holiday averaged 4.3 points in 11.1 minutes for Golden State that season, yet has gone on to become a 25-30 minute per game player for various teams in the years since. His 3-and-D skillset has made him a valuable commodity, having shot 36.5% from beyond the arc on 4.4 attempts per game throughout the course of his career.

Golden State's success proves they haven't really missed Holiday in any meaningful way, but the 35-year-old has nonetheless gone onto have a long career in a way some may not have thought possible after his single season with the franchise.

3. Kelly Oubre Jr.

Klay Thompson's second devastating leg injury forced the Warriors to look for a replacement ahead of the 2020-21 season, with the front office ultimately trading for Kelly Oubre Jr. which cost Joe Lacob and the front office tens of millions in luxury tax.

While Oubre had his moments which included a career-high 40-point game against the Dallas Mavericks, the move didn't really pay dividends for Golden State. The former lottery pick put up numbers but wasn't overly efficient, and his play just contradicted so much of the Steve Kerr-led Golden State style.

Nothing proved that more than Oubre's on-off numbers that season. The Warriors were a -5.3 net rating with him off the floor and a +6.8 in the minutes he was off, with the team never finding their best form until a hand injury forced Oubre to sit the final 10 games of the season.

The following season he earned Sixth Man of the Year votes with the Charlotte Hornets, then averaged a career-high 20.4 points per game. But after two seasons with a woeful team where his numbers had been inflated, Oubre had to rehab his value which is exactly what he did after signing a minimum deal with the Philadelphia 76ers last offseason.

His box score stats with Philly were somewhat similar to his year with Golden State, yet there's little doubt he was far more impactful including in the playoffs where Oubre averaged a mammoth 37.3 minutes and shot 39.1% from three-point range across the first-round series loss to the New York Knicks.

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