Sports

Andrew Bogut heads to the court for the Golden State Warriors in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder on May 30, 2016. (Ezra Shaw / Getty Images)

Warriors Bring Former 1st Overall Pick Back to the NBA To Bolster Depth

By The Wildcard March 6, 2019 at 12:58pm

Andrew Bogut is rejoining the Golden State Warriors after being cleared by his Australian team, the Sydney Kings.

Welcome back, @andrewbogut ? pic.twitter.com/YiBiYtRO3Y

— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) March 6, 2019

Golden State had an open roster spot and chose to use it at center.

The Warriors lost Damian Jones in December, and he underwent surgery for a torn left pectoral muscle.

Bogut, the 2005 No. 1 overall draft pick out of Utah, appeared in 23 games for the Lakers last season and made five starts.

He averaged 1.6 points and 3.4 rebounds in 9.4 minutes.

OFFICIAL: @andrewbogut will return to the @warriors on a short term contract for the remainder of the current @NBA season.

This is an exciting opportunity for both Andrew and the Kings.

Andrew will return to Sydney, and the purple and gold faithful, ready to go for #NBL20 ? pic.twitter.com/sueC2BoLvu

— Sydney Kings (@SydneyKings) March 6, 2019

Bogut played on the Warriors’ 2015 champion team and the 73-win team the following season that lost in Game 7 of the NBA Finals to LeBron James and the Cavaliers.

He was injured in Game 5 and missed the rest of the series.

Steph Curry says the potential return of Andrew Bogut to the #Warriors is ‘exciting’ – ‘He knows how we do things around here’ #DubNation https://t.co/XvqY74kUe9 pic.twitter.com/l6Vdl7F3gw

— NBA Australia (@NBA_AU) March 6, 2019

Then Bogut got traded to Dallas to create salary cap room for Golden State to sign Kevin Durant, who went on to become back-to-back Finals MVP while bringing the franchise two more titles.

The Warriors had to wait on Bogut’s work visa and clearance from FIBA to sign him.

The 34-year-old Australian big man was originally acquired from Milwaukee in 2012 for Monta Ellis.

The Western Journal has reviewed this Associated Press story and may have altered it prior to publication to ensure that it meets our editorial standards.

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