The Golden State Warriors have already been contemplating making moves on big men Tyson Chandler, Nene, DeAndre Jordan and Marc Gasol, but just how likely are they to sign any of these big men? The W's retooled front office and young nucleus of Steph Curry and Monta Ellis could be appetizing to some, but we all know it will eventually come down to dollars cents for most of these guys. So just how much leeway does Golden State have with it's payroll? Let's take a closer look.
The Warriors' current payroll is around $51 million, a solid $7 million under the $58 million salary cap. If the team chose to use its amnesty option on Charlie Bell, who's set to earn $4.1 million in 2011-12, then the W's could be looking at around $11 million in cap space. They could also choose to waive someone like Andris Biedrins or David Lee and open up even more space.
That $11-13 million range is right around the price guys like Nene are likely to garner, placing the W's in the thick of things if they so desired to be there. They could try and be agressive or sit back and see who comes on the market after other teams using their amnesty provision, providing a much cheaper option to pick up talent.
Whatever they choose, the fan base is licking their chops at what the Warriors could be, now it's the front office's job to wet their appetite.
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