Former Gorman guard in limbo with Warriors
C.J. Watson thinks his play at the NBA Summer League was good enough to keep him employed in the league this fall. Whether the Golden State Warriors agree remains to be seen.
The Warriors must decide whether to offer contracts to Watson, a former Bishop Gorman star guard, and former UNLV forward Louis Amundson.
“We like them both,” said Chris Mullin, Golden State’s vice president of basketball operations. “We’re figuring out what we want to do. We’ve got a lot of things going on.”
The Warriors finished summer league play 4-1 with a 95-90 win over Toronto on Saturday at Cox Pavilion.
Watson was held out of the game with a right thigh contusion. Amundson twisted his left ankle late in the first quarter and did not return after posting four points and three rebounds.
Watson, who played in 32 games with Golden State last season, played well this week, averaging 18.9 points and a team-best 4.3 assists per game.
“It depends on what they want to do, but I have faith in what I did out here,” Watson said of his future with the Warriors. “I believe something good will happen.”
Amundson averaged 7.0 points and 5.3 rebounds. His case for sticking around probably was hurt by Golden State’s acquisition of former Lakers power forward Ronny Turiaf on Friday.
“It’s the business aspect of it,” Amundson said. “I thought I played pretty well, but it’s up to them as to what happens.”
• ROBINSON RETURNS — Nate Robinson’s summer league participation was supposed to be over after one game Friday. But the 5-foot-9-inch New York Knicks guard suited up again and had 11 points — all on free throws — in the Knicks’ 103-71 loss to Charlotte at Cox Pavilion.
“I wasn’t going to play, but I got tired of sitting around the hotel doing nothing,” Robinson said. “I needed something to do.”
• LAKERS FLAT IN FINALE — The Los Angeles Lakers finished summer league play at 2-4 with a 92-79 loss to Denver at the Thomas & Mack Center.
The Lakers never led and shot just 65 percent — 13-for-20 — from the foul line. Guard Joe Crawford, the Lakers’ second-round draft pick, led the Los Angeles with 17 points.
The Nuggets, who led 53-36 at halftime, ended summer league play 4-1. Bobby Jones led Denver with 18 points.
Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or (702) 387-2913.