Golden State Warriors rookie LJ Cryer has been one of the quiet and few positives for the Golden State Warriors over the past 20 games, and so much so that the young guard may have played his way into a new contract with the team.
After playing for the Warriors in Summer League and then as part of their training camp roster, Cryer rejoined the Warriors at the start of December, taking the place of 52nd overall pick Alex Toohey on a two-way contract.
LJ Cryer has played himself into a new with deal the Warriors
Based on his output in limited opportunity since the All-Star break, Cryer is certainly worth persisting with given he'll still be eligible for a two-way deal next season where he can split his time between Golden State and Santa Cruz in the G League.
The 24-year-old made an impact on the Warriors in his first real rotation opportunity, scoring 12 points on 4-of-8 3-point shooting in a shock overtime win over the Houston Rockets back on March 5.
Ever since that point, Cryer has been a consistent 3-point threat, translating that skill from College and in the G League where he's been a dominant scorer in recent years. Despite averaging less than 14 minutes on the season, the 6'1" guard has hit three 3-pointers on five separate occassions in the last five games.
Cryer is shooting an electric 44% from beyond the arc with Golden State this season, and his ability to make triples off the dribble has been a welcome and otherwise uncommon sight in the rotation without Stephen Curry available.
Cryer could be one of the victims of the rotation squeeze once the 2x MVP returns, with Curry set to be re-evaluated on Tuesday after the Warriors complete what's been a disastrous six-game road-trip to date.
LJ Cryer deserves another chance on a two-way deal
It's still too early to pinpoint exactly what Golden State's two-way trio will look like next season, having got production from Cryer, Nate Williams and Malevy Leons in recent weeks, and so too Pat Spencer before he was converted to the main roster.
However, Cryer certainly has an advantage. He's certainly been more impressive and is younger than Leons, while Williams will no longer be eligible for a two-way contract given this is his fourth year in the league.
Perhaps Cryer will need to earn the deal by playing again with the Warriors in Summer League, but there's no doubt he's already got one foot on being with the team again next season.