Kevon Looney might be the biggest name to depart the Golden State Warriors so far this offseason, but he won't be the only one from the roster that reached the second-round of this year's playoffs.
Kevin Knox II earned his opportunity with the main squad after an impressive start to the G League season, yet his brief time at the Warriors is likely already over given who the franchise has been linked to in free agency.
The Warriors have made their stance on Kevin Knox II crystal clear
There was a thought immediately following the season that Knox had shown enough to earn another opportunity, only for those chances to now look extremely remote despite Golden State having not made a single move in free agency.
The Warriors may only have nine contracted players on the roster, but are expected to sign Al Horford and De'Anthony Melton once the Jonathan Kuminga situation is resolved. Speaking of Kuminga, Golden State will either re-sign the former seventh overall pick or bring back at least one player in a sign-and-trade.
That would leave the Warriors with 12 contracted players, with their other two spots likely to be made up by some combination, according to reports, of Seth Curry, Gary Payton, Malcolm Brogdon or perhaps 56th overall pick Will Richard.
That therefore provides little room for Knox, with the 25-year-old also ineligible for a two-way contract given he's now seven years into his career after being taken ninth overall by the New York Knicks in 2018.
Having played summer league with Golden State last season, Knox was one of the best performers in the G League to start the season. He averaged 25.3 points, 8.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 12 regular season games, shooting a blistering 52.7% from the floor and 44.4% from 3-point range.
That production made Knox an obvious candidate to be called up once the Warriors opened a host of roster spots with the 4-for-1 Jimmy Butler trade in early February, subsequently signing a pair of 10-day contracts followed by a rest of season deal.
Knox appeared in 14 games during the regular season followed by an additional five during the playoffs, including going for 14 points, four rebounds and two assists in Game 5 of the first-round series against the Houston Rockets.
It now appears crystal clear that Knox won't get a guaranteed contract this offseason. Perhaps he may find be invited back onto the training camp roster, and from there his best opportunity would be to again impress in the G League and see if another spot opens up mid-season.