The Golden State Warriors are sending James Wiseman to the G League on Tuesday for the foreseeable future. It could last up to 10 consecutive days, based on what coach Steve Kerr told NBA reporters on Monday night.
Wiseman has continued to be a bad NBA player. He was a -6 against the San Antonio Spurs with just two points, two rebounds, and three assists. The Warriors have struggled mightily when he’s been on the court throughout his career and that negative trend has continued.
Wiseman doesn’t view being sent to the G League as a ‘demotion’ or ‘punishment’ as opposed to it being an opportunity for him to get reps.
“I don’t look at this as a demotion,” Wiseman told reporters Monday night. “I’m just ready to go out there and hoop.”
Perhaps part of the problem that Wiseman faces begins with his perception of his own game, like most of the team’s young players. Being sent to the G League is absolutely a demotion. Players who grasp their team’s system and play well are not sent down to the G League.
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The fact of the matter is, Wiseman looks slow and lost when he’s on the court for the Warriors. He was unpolished when he declared for the 2020 NBA Draft and has shown little to no improvement in his game since.
“He needs reps. He needs to play,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “It’s not easy when you don’t get minutes.”
Jordan Poole, Wiseman’s Warriors teammate, offered some advice about being sent down to the G League. He spent 11 games with Santa Cruz in 2020-21 when he was in his second season in the NBA and averaged 22.4 points during his stint.
“I’m telling [Wiseman] this is not a demotion. This is not a punishment,” Poole said. “… I’m telling him to go down there and take 50 shots, be aggressive, get techs, hang on the rim, do it all. Just so he can understand what he wants to be at the highest level. This is just a step in that direction.”
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Again, Poole’s advice is head-scratching, considering he was sent to the G League partly because he was terrible early in his Warriors career. There are growing pains with any young player, but he frustrated the team with his shot-chucking tendencies and general lack of commitment defensively. Just as it is for Wiseman, it was a demotion for Poole.
The Warriors would be better served to be honest with their young players instead of sugarcoating the circumstances. Right now, Wiseman is a lousy player. Does that mean he always will be? No. But he is a negative contributor on both sides of the court right now. It would serve him well to acknowledge he’s been ineffective and look around at what his peers from the 2020 NBA Draft have accomplished.
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For an organization that is trying to build two timelines, things are not going well with the lack of impact they are receiving from recent top picks in Wiseman and Jonathan Kuminga.
