In yesterday's Warriors game against the Nuggets, Peyton Jr. was picked up in the starting lineup by Kerr. He had a very good performance in the last game, playing 25 minutes and having 12 points and 4 rebounds, including 6 steals. And his six steals have had many of them allow the Warriors to complete direct scoring. In the last game, Payton Jr. was the only player on the warriors with a positive plus-minus on the court. And his plus-minus is as high as positive 13, which is really incredible.
We can now clearly feel that Payton Jr. has become one of the Warriors' defensive cores. In some key games, Cole will let Peyton Jr. come on when he can't find a good defender. Payton Jr. has now become a defensive top player. Strictly speaking, Payton Jr.'s team status is now above damian Lee and Anderson.
Payton Jr. is known to have signed a formal contract with the Warriors this year, so he was able to stay with the team. But his contract will expire after the season. What we can imagine now is that once the offseason starts, the Warriors will immediately renew their contract with Payton Jr., which is almost a foregone conclusion. The Warriors have changed significantly in front-line defense now, and their defensive configuration is not as good as in previous seasons. Although Thompson did not fall much on the offensive end after his comeback, the decline on the defensive end was still very obvious, so they only had a defensive stability point like Wiggins on the front line. The importance of Peyton Jr. is reflected. So the Warriors shouldn't think too much about keeping him.
After the offseason begins, Payton Jr. will definitely take the Warriors as his first choice. After all, in this team he was able to prove himself again, and Cole is also his Bole. In the Warriors, Peyton Jr. can play his characteristics and show his defensive ability in the five small lineups, but his role may not be so obvious when he goes to other teams. So from another point of view, it is also the inclusiveness of the Warriors system that has made Payton Jr.
Some players have a hard time playing well once they leave the Warriors. So the players will think about whether to stay with the Warriors or go to other teams after the end of the season. Lessons from the past tell us that staying in the Warriors may be the best option, and many players leave the Warriors and slowly run out of the ball.