Warriors Notes: Roster, Rotation, Looney, Kuminga, Moody, Staff

Speaking Thursday with reporters including The Athletic’s Anthony Slater and ESPN’s Kendra Andrews, warrior Chief Executive Officer Mike Dunleavy Jr. said the front office believes it has “improved the team this offseason,” although he indicated the club will continue to look for further improvements.

“Given our time horizon and all that, we’re probably as impatient a franchise as you can be right now.” Dunleavy said, according to Slater. “But there is a fine line between impatience and indiscipline. I am happy with the discipline we have exercised this summer, the squad we have built and the growth we will experience from within. I know everyone is always looking for big headlines and all that, but I really like this team.”

As Slater writes, Dunleavy stressed that “there’s no point in going all in to be slightly above average,” but he and the Warriors’ owner did Joe Lacob have both expressed that they are willing to offload some future assets to improve the current squad.

“Does that mean we’re definitely going to do something? NO,” said the Warriors GM. “We were super aggressive around the deadline last year. Didn’t do much. You must have a partner. It can be difficult to do business in this league. But the effort and the urgency will always be there.”

Here’s more on the Warriors:

• Head coach Steve Kerr is pleased with the depth the Warriors have on their roster, suggesting that as many as 12 to 13 players have a case for rotation minutes and that there could be multiple starting lineup spots up for grabs this fall, according to Andrews and Slater. “What I love about this camp is that we have (starting) spots available.” Kerr said. “We have a lot of guys who have started a lot of games. Last year Wiggs (Andrew Wiggins), (Jonathan Kuminga), Draymond (Green), Trayce (Jackson Davis) started some games. (Brandin Podziemski), De’Anthony (Melton), Buddy (Hield) was a starter for most of his career. For me it’s easiest to just tell the guys that we have spots available. That doesn’t mean I’m going to tell you or them how many there are.” As Slater writes: Stephen Curry and Green are in the starting lineup, and Wiggins is a relatively safe bet to join them unless he plays his way out of the job, but there could be competition for the other two spots in the starting lineup.
• While it’s unclear what role he will play for the Warriors in 2024-25, an experienced big man Kevon Looney is in “phenomenal shape,” a source told NBC Sports Bay Area’s Dalton Johnson. Speaking to NBC Sports Bay Area, Looney agreed with that assessment. “I feel lighter on my feet, I feel like I can move better” he said. “I can move the way I want for longer and feel like I have a little more stamina.”
• Dunleavy said Thursday that the team has had “positive discussions” with Kuminga and representatives Moses Moody about possible additions to the rookie scale, tweets Andrews. “No matter if we get anything done (by Oct. 21), we want these people here.” Dunleavy said. “Just because you don’t do an extension doesn’t mean they won’t be here for a long time. We still have their free agency rights if we can’t reach an agreement by the 21st. I think the most important thing for them is that we get through the next few weeks with a deal or not, but the only thing that matters is that they have a great season.”
• The Warriors officially announced today (via Twitter) that they have hired Terry Stotts And Jerry Stackhouse as an assistant coach, which was first reported at the beginning of the season break. Khalid Robinson, Jacob RubinAnd Anthony Vereen have also been promoted to assistant coaching positions, the club confirmed.
• Tim Kawakami of The San Francisco Standard shared some of the highlights of his conversation with Kerr on a recent episode of his TK Show podcast. We shared some of Kerr’s comments Klay ThompsonDeparture on Wednesday.