The Warriors could be looking like a completely different team by next week.
On Tuesday afternoon, the team announced that James Wiseman has been cleared to play game action for the G League Santa Cruz Warriors Thursday in Stockton and Sunday at Chase Center. This would mark Wiseman’s first game action since he tore the meniscus in his right knee on April 10 of last year.
It’s been an arduous 11-month rehab for Wiseman to this point, but these games will likely serve as the final litmus tests before the 20-year-old big man can rejoin the roster. Draymond Green said he’s targeting a Monday return, meaning the Warriors could soon finally be at full strength for the first time since Klay Thompson rejoined the team on Jan. 9.
The past two months have been a gauntlet for the Warriors, who have lost nine of 11 and desperately need Wiseman and Green’s size inside. The Warriors don’t have any players listed above 6-foot-10, with the tallest being 6-foot-9 Kevon Looney and Nemanja Bjelica. Wiseman would give the team an immediate lob threat and rim protector, though it’s unclear how much he will be able to produce as such a young player with a long layoff.
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No matter what, adding an athletic 7-footer to the bench is a good thing. The 2021 No. 2 overall pick had an up-and-down rookie season, finishing with 11.6 points and 5.8 rebounds per game while shooting 51.9 percent from the floor.
The Warriors coaching staff could get a chance to look at Wiseman up close on Sunday when Santa Cruz hosts the G League Ignite in San Francisco. It probably doesn’t make much sense for Wiseman to return to the NBA with a back-to-back assignment, so perhaps Monday’s game against the Washington Wizards won't be ideal for a return. But the March 16 date against the Boston Celtics could be a logical fit for Wiseman’s 2022 debut, which would potentially give the Warriors a 13-game runway as a full unit before the playoffs.
