Golden State Warriors GM Bob Myers ‘pretty confident’ about re-signing Stephen Curry to extension

SAN FRANCISCO — Golden State Warriors normal supervisor Bob Myers is “fairly assured” he’ll be capable to signal Stephen Curry to an extension this summer time after the 33-year-old star guard led the league in scoring by averaging 32 factors a recreation and was a top-three finalist for the MVP award.

“I don’t see any cause to not be optimistic,” Myers stated throughout an end-of-the-season video convention on Monday. “He looks like he’s motivated; we’re motivated. I’d say fairly assured we’ll get one thing accomplished.”

As ESPN’s Bobby Marks famous, Curry’s new extension can be record-setting: He would develop into the primary participant in NBA historical past to signal two separate offers value over $200 million. Curry turned the primary participant to signal a supermax extension in 2017 whereas inking a deal value $201 million over 5 years. He’s now eligible to signal a four-year, $215.4 million extension that may hold him underneath contract by the 2025-26 season.

“Clearly, we wish Steph again within the worst means,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr stated. “There’s no cause to suppose why that gained’t occur. We’re enthusiastic about that. We’re enthusiastic about subsequent season. You already know, coming again with Draymond [Green] and Steph enjoying at such a excessive degree to complete the season and to get Klay [Thompson] again and to have the chance to fortify our roster, to see these younger guys emerge, it’s all very thrilling.”

One of many causes the Warriors stay so excited is that they’re assured Thompson, who missed his second straight season after struggling ACL and Achilles tendon accidents, will return to the ground. As Myers identified, it doesn’t seem possible that Thompson can be prepared for the beginning of the common season.

“I don’t know that it’ll be the beginning of the yr,” Myers stated. “We’ll see extra as camp will get nearer. After I say begin of the yr, I imply Recreation 1. I don’t know if that’s lifelike or not. That’ll be lower than a yr. … I don’t know what date the season opens up, however I believe that’ll be 11 months. I don’t know that that’s lifelike.

“I wish to discuss Klay loads, however I’m reluctant as a result of I don’t wish to use that as an excuse. I don’t need folks to suppose, when Klay comes again, the whole lot goes to be nice. As nice as he’s, and it’ll assist loads, we’ve got to take a look at our workforce and say Klay can be an enormous addition, however there’s different areas the place we have to enhance on, as properly. However I don’t know precisely when it’ll be.”

Myers stated a key for him heading into the offseason is including veterans to the roster. Except for Curry, whom Myers stated performed with a “small hairline” fracture of his tailbone down the stretch, and Inexperienced, the Warriors didn’t have a robust veteran presence like they did off the bench in years previous.

“I do know we want veterans, and the one space I can say with out form of equivocating is we’ve got so as to add some veterans in free company,” Myers stated. “We simply should. We’re properly conscious of that. We’ll attempt to do it. We really tried to do it final yr with a number of guys, so it wasn’t as if that mindset didn’t exist. It doesn’t matter, no person cares, however we have been in second place with fairly a number of guys that I believe have been veteran, may have helped, however they selected to go to a workforce after Klay’s harm that they thought they may win it extra, and that’s truthful to them.”

Myers supplied a proof for why the Warriors struggled so as to add a higher veteran presence as in comparison with different groups in recent times.

“Some even stated, ‘Had Klay not gotten harm, I’d have come,’” Myers stated. “Who is aware of if that’s true or not. However that’s the factor we hope we’ve achieved within the final couple months, is confirmed to a few of these form of guys, I believe the Warriors can win. They should imagine that. I hope we’ve confirmed that we’re shut. However that’s what you get once you’re a vet minimal man or a vet taxpayer that’s possibly taking much less cash, is can I win with the Warriors? There’s little doubt they like enjoying with Steph and so they love Steve, and I believe they view our group as one which takes care of its gamers.”

One of many gamers the Warriors seem to wish to handle most is 20-year-old heart James Wiseman. After Wiseman’s up-and-down rookie season that ended abruptly after he suffered a meniscus tear in his proper knee in April, Myers made it clear he didn’t plan to deal the younger participant throughout the offseason.

“I believe he will help us,” Myers stated. “I anticipate him to be on the workforce subsequent yr. We don’t wish to commerce James Wiseman. I believe he’s an amazing expertise, and he was put able the place, once more, the man is taking, hopefully, all of his lumps early in his profession, however I believe he will be very useful to us sooner or later. I believe he will be useful within the current.”

Myers additionally stated that Kelly Oubre Jr. “did make it clear he’d wish to be right here” of their exit interview; however Kerr famous that whereas he favored Oubre and hoped he would return, the swingman can be doing so off the bench.

“Klay goes to begin when he will get again,” Kerr stated. “So would Kelly be focused on coming off the bench? That’s a query solely he can reply. He’ll weigh his choices, we’ll weigh ours and we’ll see the place all of it goes. However actually like Kelly, actually suppose he’s bought nice potential to be very useful on our workforce.”

Kerr additionally stated that regardless of the painful losses to the Los Angeles Lakers and Memphis Grizzlies throughout the play-in match, he’s hopeful the idea stays within the recreation, as a result of he believes the match is sweet for the league.

“I joked that — a month in the past — I’d hate it if we misplaced and find it irresistible if we gained, however truthfully, I find it irresistible,” Kerr stated. “I believe it’s nice. I believe it’s nice for the league, and what’s nice for the league needs to be extra vital than being concerned concerning the eighth seed lacking out on the playoffs. I believe it needs to be one thing we stick with. There was extra curiosity in additional video games down the stretch than there was in a very long time. There have been some mini-races inside groups attempting to keep away from seventh. I assumed it was fascinating as a fan.”

As for his personal workforce’s future, whereas he Kerr optimistic the group can flip issues round rapidly, he agreed with Inexperienced’s evaluation after Friday’s loss to the Grizzlies that the group was “a methods away” from one other title.

“I really agree with that,” Kerr stated. “I believe it could be smug for us having simply missed the playoffs to say, ‘Hey, we’re proper there.’ We’re a methods away, however we like the trail that we’re on. We love the truth that … we’ve bought Steph and Draymond enjoying at a excessive degree, we’ve bought younger gamers who’ve emerged.

“We all know James goes to be higher with a yr underneath his belt. We’ve bought a pair first-round picks; we’ve bought free company developing. Most significantly, we’ve bought Klay coming again. You throw all that collectively and I like our possibilities to make a giant leap. However no, we are able to’t sit right here and truthfully say we’re near a championship, as a result of Draymond is correct: We’ve bought to make the playoffs first earlier than we are saying that.”