Nevius: Never too much of a good thing on Warriors’ roster

Bob Myers is one of those guys that tells you more than you expected.

For instance, after Thursday night’s NBA draft, the Warriors GM casually mentioned that first-round draft choice Patrick Baldwin Jr. is still feeling the effects of the ankle injury that saw him only play in 11 games this year in college.

And that while second-round pick Ryan Rollins played in a three-on-three scrimmage during his visit with the Warriors, Baldwin was limited.

“He kind of shot,” Myers said. “It was not really a ‘workout’ workout.”

(For the record, Baldwin said Friday his ankle is “95%” and although he wanted to be careful, “I do want to play Summer League.”

A bad ankle on the first-rounder? That would be big news at some franchises. But it’s barely a blip with Golden State, where they do things a little differently.

You’ve probably noticed that the NBA draft has turned into a full-blown media extravaganza. There are TV interviews with proud parents, hugs and tears from the players and the kind of bedazzled suits that used to only be seen on country-western singers on the Grand Ole Opry.

In contrast, Baldwin, who attended unheralded Wisconsin-Milwaukee, wasn’t even at the draft.

“I was in a room (at home) with about 60 of my ex-coaches and ex-teammates,” he said at his introduction Friday. “I did consider going to the draft, but then I wouldn’t have been there with all of them.”

Meanwhile, Rollins wasn’t rocking a custom jacket at his Friday presser.

Instead, he was wearing a T-shirt — with a fluffy teddy bear on it.

No special significance, he said, “It’s just a brand that I like.”

So it looks like they are going to fit right in.

“We didn’t draft guys that are at the front of everyone’s mind as far as watching college basketball,” Myers said.

It is pretty clear the Warriors have a type. Myers mentioned that Baldwin was “a coach’s son” three times on draft night.

“Not that that makes him a good thinker,” Myers said. “Not all of them are. But most of them.”

He also admitted the obvious. Baldwin was ranked as the nation’s No. 5 prospect coming out of high school and was recruited by Duke.

And, “he probably underperformed in college,” Myers said.

They’re going to work on his shot, which Myers said looked a little flat. Which may be part of the reason he shot just 34% from the floor and just 26% from three.

Still, Myers likes Baldwin’s length, 6-9, and his skill set.

“We are going to put him in our system, give him a shot,” Myers said. “Surround him with guys he respects. We feel like if we play talent into that equation, we can get a good outcome.”

Truth be told, Myers almost sounded more excited about Rollins, the 6-4 guard from Toledo. Rollins averaged 18.9 points a game, but if you are looking for a Warriors Way stat, consider his average of 1.7 steals a game.

Rollins, Myers said, “has a little bit of that (Jordan) Poole game.”

They didn’t think he’d be available with their 51st pick, so they worked a trade and paid cash to move up and get him.

Now they’ll put him in Warriors U and see how he develops.

Myers has reason to believe the system works.

Although they were much higher draft choices, the trio of Moses Moody, Jonathan Kuminga and James Wiseman made strides in their early years. Now they are expected to be “rotational players for us next year,” Myers said.

He said Moody and Kuminga were actually ahead of their rookie schedule. The team wasn’t counting on them for minutes when the season started, but by the end Moody was getting minutes in the Western Conference Finals and Kuminga had some starts.

Wiseman, starting his third year, remains an international man of mystery. The team insists he’s ready to play, but the fact is he’s done more sitting than playing, going all the way back to college.

“We’re going to cultivate a role for him,” Myers said, “and make it more finite than in his rookie year.”

Maybe something simple, along the lines of: run the floor, catch lobs and block shots.

At any rate, the plan for now is to get those three in Steve Kerr’s regular rotation.

“You’ve got those three guys,” Myers said. “And then you add Poole, (Steph) Curry, Klay (Thompson), Draymond (Green) and (Andrew) Wiggins. That’s five. Am I missing someone?”

Uh, yeah. Kevon Looney, Gary Payton II, Otto Porter Jr. and Nemanja Bjelica, among others.

It doesn’t sound encouraging, although that could be good news for them. They’ve played so well that they will probably get significant salary raises that could be too expensive for the Warriors.

“We are going to make every effort,” Myers said. “But we don’t control the market.”

It will be a bonus if the team can sign one of them, but more likely you’ve got the aforementioned core five veterans and the three young guys.

“That’s eight players,” Myers said. “And we still need to surround them with vets. We think it is easier to get older players in free agency. And we’re going to do that.”

Meanwhile, the rookies will try to get their bearings. Excuse them for moments of culture shock.

Baldwin said he has already gotten his locker assignment.

“It is an amazing place to be in the locker room,” he said. “I’m sandwiched between Steph Curry and Andrew Wiggins.”

Just like college.

Contact C.W. Nevius at cw.nevius@pressdemocrat.com. Twitter: @cwnevius