Golden State Warriors center Anderson Varejao (18) takes a shot before the Washington Wizards face the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Tuesday, March 29, 2016.
The Warriors made a roster move Friday to solidify the end of their bench.
They waived veteran center Anderson Varejao to make room for NBA D-League player of the month Briante Weber, as first reported by The Vertical.
The 24-year-old will reportedly sign a 10-day contract with the Warriors after averaging 16.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 3.3 steals for the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
The 6-foot-2 guard played mostly point guard in the D-League and in his brief stint with the Memphis Grizzlies and Miami Heat last season.
Varejao, who has appeared in 14 games this year, may opt for retirement as there is projected to be few suitors for the 34-year old who was constantly roasted by Warriors fans on Twitter this season.
This move not only provides backcourt depth with Shaun Livingston dealing with a mid-back strain but it finally balances a Warriors roster who had been loaded at the center position.
It’s been especially apparent in garbage time during blowouts where the Warriors have been trotting out James Michael McAdoo in the small forward spot alongside Kevon Looney and Varejao.
Now the Warriors can play a more traditional lineup with Weber, Ian Clark, Patrick McCaw, Looney and McAdoo or Damian Jones at center.
This may not seem like a big deal, but with the Warriors routinely blowing teams out, it saves Livingston or Klay Thompson from piling up needless minutes, and that could be a big deal come playoff time.
The Warriors haven’t officially announced the move, but it is expected that Weber would be available to play in Saturday’s game against the Kings barring any hold ups.
Curtis Uemura is SFBay’s Golden State Warriors beat writer. Follow @SFBay and @CUemura on Twitter and at SFBay.ca for full coverage of Warriors basketball.
Last modified February 5, 2017 12:37 am
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