JULY 6: The Warriors have issued a press release announcing that they’ve officially signed McCaw to his first NBA contract.
JUNE 24: Former UNLV shooting guard Patrick McCaw has become the first player from this year’s draft class to reach a contract agreement with his new team. According to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link), McCaw has agreed to terms with the Warriors on a guaranteed, two-year, minimum-salary deal.
McCaw, who left UNLV after his sophomore season, came off the board 38th overall on Thursday night, after the Warriors sent $2.4MM to the Bucks to acquire the pick. After the draft, Golden State general manager Bob Myers indicated that the team had a first-round grade on McCaw (Twitter link via Rusty Simmons of The San Francisco Chronicle).
Because McCaw will only be signing a two-year contract, the Warriors figure to use the minimum salary exception to complete the deal, which will allow the club to sign the rookie without using any cap room or a larger exception. He’ll be in line for a salary of $543,471 in 2016/17, with a second-year salary of $905,249.
The arrivals of McCaw and first-round pick Damian Jones figure to make it easier for the Warriors to let go of veteran free agents at their positions. Anderson Varejao, Brandon Rush, and Leandro Barbosa are among the Warriors bench players whose contracts are expiring.
This is a great move. This guy could be in the rotation in a few years as soon as he bulks up.