© Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Saturday marks the first time the Warriors will play a game with their NBA roster since winning their third NBA Finals trophy in four years back in June. They’ll take on the Minnesota Timberwolves to open their preseason, with every starting position except center locked down.
It’s unclear when DeMarcus Cousins will return to from his left Achilles tear and how he will be affected by it. It’s left the battle for the center position wide open, with head coach Steve Kerr saying one of Damian Jones, Kevon Looney or Jordan Bell will take the starting job. On Warriors Media Day, Kerr said he’d avoid starting Draymond Green at center in a small-ball lineup.
While Kerr is normally pretty hush on starting lineups, today, his birthday, was a deviation from the norm. He announced that Damian Jones will likely start at center on Saturday. When asked why he revealed that Jones would start, he said his birthday had him in a positive mood, according to Anthony Slater.
Steve Kerr, typically silent on lineup decisions, asked why he revealed his likely starting center (Damian Jones) for Saturday: “Today’s my birthday. I’m in a good mood. I had a really good gluten free waffle in there for breakfast. Doesn’t sound good, but it was tasty.”
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) September 27, 2018