Signing LeBron James remains the number one priority for the Golden State Warriors after the first day of free agency, but it's not the only order of business the front office has to work through.
Quinten Post's restricted free agency has gone under the radar in recent days, yet rival interest in the seven-footer has suddenly thrown it into the spotlight given it's relevance to Golden State's pursuit of James.
Warriors face new LeBron complication with Quinten Post's free agency
The Warriors did put forth a qualifying offer to Post in order to make him a restricted free agent, with some rivals now eyeing the former 52nd overall pick with a potential contract offer that Mike Dunleavy Jr. and the front office would have the opportunity to match.
Jake Fischer of The Stein Line reported on Tuesday night that Post still has fans within the organization despite an underwhelming finish to his second year, while external interest in the Dutchman could add a complicated element to the James chase.
..."It's been described as quite possible that a front office out there could elect to sign Post to an offer sheet over the holiday weekend and inject another complicated variable to the Warriors' accounting as they await James' free agency decision," Fischer wrote.
Every dollar is going to count for the Warriors when it comes to acquiring James and filling out the rest of the roster, and they may not have accounted for a rival team putting together an offer sheet beyond the $2.6 million qualifying offer.
At the same time, Golden State aren't about to let their third-string center jeopardize their ability to land James. If the finances are as such where they can't afford to pay Post more than the qualifying offer, they might be willing to let him walk to another team.
Quinten Post retains interest with rotation quality skillset
We shouldn't be overly surprised that a few rival teams are eyeing Post as a restricted free agent, such is the skillset that he's brought to the table and displayed at various points over the first two years of his career.
The 26-year-old emerged onto the scene during his rookie year as a floor spacing big man who shot 40.8% from beyond the arc -- an incredibly valuable skill for a center to have in the modern NBA. There were question marks defensively in his rookie season, but he evidently improved on that end of the floor through the first half of this past season.
Unfortunately those improvements coincided with Post dipping to just 33.6% from 3-point range in his second year. If he can combine those defensive improvements with a return to being a 40% shooter from deep, then there's a quality rotation big who could still have a long NBA career.
The Warriors may well have Post back as their third center entering next season, but they're also not going to let him stand in the way of a James pursuit which remains their clear and obvious focus.
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