Warriors May Re-Sign Anthony Tolliver, Devean George

LAS VEGAS -- It wasn't long ago Golden State had a full plate.

The Warriors had 14 players locked up to contracts next season or as restricted free agents with qualifying offers. So they decided not to extend the $1.025 million qualifying offer to forward Anthony Tolliver, coming off a season in which he averaged 12.3 points and 7.3 rebounds. That made him an unrestricted rather than a restricted free agent.

But much has changed since then. The Warriors did a sign-and-trade with New York in which they received David Lee while giving up three players (Anthony Randolph, Ronny Turiaf and Kelanna Azubuike). They dispatched Anthony Morrow in a sign-and-trade with New Jersey and didn't get a player back. And they dealt restricted free-agent C.J. Watson to Chicago in a sign-and-trade and got no players back.

Throw in first-round pick Ekpe Udoh, and the Warriors were down to 11 players. It reached 12 Wednesday when they signed undrafted rookie point guard Jeremy Lin.

Now, the Warriors need at least one more player and possibly two. In an interview with FanHouse on Wednesday at Team USA training camp, general manager Larry Riley confirmed Golden State is looking into the possibility of bringing back Tolliver and forward Devean George, also an unrestricted free agent who averaged 5.4 points last season with the Warriors. Riley said it's not out of the question both could be re-signed.

"We have some decisions to make,'' said Riley, who said he hopes to sort matters out in the next 10 days. "I wouldn't want to say how close we are (to re-signing George or Tolliver). But there is dialogue (with the agents of both players on a regular basis).''

George told FanHouse last week he wants to return to the Warriors. While nothing is certain, Riley does like George.

"The whole package on Devean is a good one,'' Riley said. "He's good in the locker room, and he's good on the floor. Those things are important. He's a pro. He's knows how to play. He's got a few rings.''

Tolliver also has been looked at by Atlanta, the Lakers, Chicago, Utah, Minnesota, Charlotte, Dallas and New York. Riley acknowledges the risk of losing Tolliver to another team, rather than having retained the right to match any offer by keeping him restricted, was a chance the Warriors had to take at the time.

"It was the 15th spot on the roster, which would have meant we had no flexibility,'' Riley said. "That was the big issue. ... At the time, that was where our roster was.''

Several trades, though, gave the Warriors ample flexibility. They had so much they could give Lin, who played at Harvard, a partially guaranteed two-year contract for the minimum.

"We like Jeremy,'' Riley said of Lin, an Asian-American from nearby Palo Alto, Calif., who figures to be hugely popular in the Bay Area. "We saw him in a workout previous to the draft, and he did a great job. He played well in (last week's NBA Summer League in Las Vegas). We saw some upside in him. We liked him as a guy who potentially could have a future with us. We want to work with him for a few years to see how much development he could get.''

Suddenly rich with roster spots, the Warriors believe they can afford to wait.

Chris Tomasson can be reached at tomasson@fanhouse.com or on Twitter @christomasson