The Golden State Warriors unsurprisingly waived Seth Curry on Saturday due to their payroll restrictions, but at exactly what point the franchise officially brings back the veteran sharpshooter could still be up in the air.
There’s absolutely no doubt that the Warriors will sign Curry when financially eligible to do so, but they may wait a little while longer than anticipated according to one NBA insider.
Warriors might wait to bring back Seth Curry onto the roster
According to Marc Stein in a piece for his Substack on Monday, November 11 appears like the earliest possible time for Golden State to bring the younger Curry brother back into the fold. However, Stein is also hearing that the Warriors might choose to wait and create a little more breathing room under the second apron.
“One option Golden State is believed to be considering is waiting a bit longer beyond that date to create some added cushion beneath the second apron,” Stein wrote.
So why exactly would the Warriors wait rather than bring Curry back as soon as possible? One reason is because they’re obviously a tax-paying team, so every dollar they spend over that means more to the final bill Joe Lacob has to pay for the roster.
The other is that it might give them slightly more flexibility with roster moves that come around or after the mid-season deadline. As a team over the first apron, Golden State can't take back more money than they send out in a trade, but they might be left having to sign free agents afterwards in a similar way as they did last season following the 4-for-1 trade for Jimmy Butler.
Waiting would also give the Warriors a little more on-court data to evaluate their circumstances. While there's no suggestion at this stage that the front office wouldn't use the 15th roster spot on Curry, that could suddenly change if there's a long-term injury to one of their frontcourt players that requires them to fortify that area.
Conversely, Golden State might have to sign Curry as soon as possible if injury issues persist in their backcourt. Moses Moody was firming to be the starting two guard before his current calf injury, while likely opening night starter Brandin Podziemski suffered a minor hip contusion in Friday's final preseason game against the L.A Clippers.
Then you have De'Anthony Melton who figures as perhaps the biggest factor in when Curry returns to the roster. If the veteran guard returns from his ACL injury in the next month and looks good, then maybe the Warriors are fine with making Curry wait. If not, they could be forced to bring the 35-year-old back sooner rather than later.