Positional need may have dictated otherwise bizarre Warriors roster decision

Most of what the Golden State Warriors have done this offseason has made sense, yet their latest move on Tuesday left fans perplexed in regard to the end of their roster.

Needing to make room for 52nd overall pick Quinten Post on a two-way contract, the Warriors chose to waive Summer League standout Daeqwon Plowden. While The Athletic's Anthony Slater has reported that the franchise still intends to bring Plowden to training camp to try and regain his two-way contract, it does leave the opportunity for another team to poach the 26-year-old before he signs an exhibit 10 contract with Golden State.

Why did the Warriors waive Daeqwon Plowden?

With now less than a week from the start of training camp, some shuffling of two-way contracts was always imminent given Post had remain unsigned. But of the three players who could have been waived to make way for the seven-foot center, Plowden was considered by many as the least likely.

Plowden was one of the best players for the Warriors in Summer League, averaging 14.6 points and 4.4 rebounds while shooting 47% from the floor and 39.6% from three-point range. Spencer also impressed but only appeared in half the games, while Beekman too was limited by injury and failed to have too much impact across his two outings.

Beekman was seen as the likely casualty, so why then was Plowden the one to be waived? There's only one possible on-court reason -- Golden State's need for more point guard depth in comparison to another wing.

The Warriors really only have Stephen Curry and Brandin Podziemski on the main roster as genuine point guards, and even then the latter has no experience doing it at the NBA level. Versatile forwards Draymond Green and Kyle Anderson are expected to take their fair share of ball-handling duties, but otherwise the depth is reasonably limited.

Perhaps that's why Golden State chose to keep two point guards in Spencer and Beekman over another 6'6" wing in Plowden. Between the likes of Andrew Wiggins, Moses Moody, Buddy Hield, De'Anthony Melton, Gary Payton II, Lindy Waters III and Gui Santos, perhaps the Warriors thought they have enough options to play at the shooting guard or small forward positions.

That's really the only plausible reason, aside from also suggesting that Beekman has higher upside being over three years younger. Maybe it's also a case of the Warriors not being totally sure about who they want right now, and that they see Plowden as least likely to be nabbed by another team before the franchise can sign him to a training camp deal.

Even that doesn't make a whole lot of sense though given the hype surrounding Plowden in Summer League. In contrast, it would have been difficult to see many rival teams having interest in a 28-year-old Spencer were he the one made available.

The Warriors made their Plowden decision official on Tuesday night, and you only have to read through the replies to get a sense of the frustration and bewilderment among the fanbase.