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Ahead of the Warriors playing the Memphis Grizzlies Monday night, coach Steve Kerr said it’s not easy for Golden State guard Jacob Evans, who has missed 21 games with an adductor strain in his left hip, to vie for minutes as he returns to the team.
Evans’ return gives the Warriors will have 12 available players for the first time since the opening week of the season. Evans accompanied the team during it’s recent five-city trip and participated in practices and shoot-arounds, showing enough progress to be made available for the first time since getting injured on Oct. 28 against the Pelicans.
“He hasn’t really had a chance to settle into the season at all. So it’ll take some time for sure,” Kerr said. “It’s great to have him back and I think he’ll get playing time right away and we’ll try to let him get comfortable the next few games and bump his minutes up from there.”
Evans will provide depth on the perimeter, and could, eventually, lead to rookie guard Jordan Poole being assigned to the team’s G League affiliate in Santa Cruz. In three games, Evans averaged 6.0 points on 41.7% shooting, including 50% from 3-point range.
Golden State Warriors' Jacob Evans (10) pulls his hair while waiting to be photographed during Media Day at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Monday, Sept. 30, 2019. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
Golden State Warriors' Jacob Evans III (10) warms up before their NBA game against the Phoenix Suns at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., on Monday, Oct. 8, 2018. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, center, loses the ball as he drives between Golden State Warriors forward Omari Spellman (4) and guard Jacob Evans III (10) in the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Golden State Warriors' D'Angelo Russell (0) talks with Jacob Evans (10)
in the fourth quarter of their NBA game against the Los Angeles Clippers at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2019. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Los Angeles Lakers guard Alex Caruso, right, tries to shoot as Golden State Warriors guard Jacob Evans defends during the first half of a preseason NBA basketball game, Monday, Oct. 14, 2019, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Los Angeles Lakers guard Demetrius Jackson, left, shoots as Golden State Warriors guard Jacob Evans defends during the first half of a preseason NBA basketball game, Monday, Oct. 14, 2019, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Golden State Warriors' Quinn Cook (4) and Golden State Warriors' Jacob Evans (10) share a laugh before the start of Game 6 of their NBA second round playoff series at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas on Friday, May 10, 2019. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
Jacob Evans, on assignment from the Golden State Warriors, tries to muscle his way past Stockton Kings guard Cameron Reynolds while the Kings' Kalin Lucas also gets a hand on Evans during Wednesday night's home opener. (Dan Coyro -- Santa Cruz Sentinel)
Memphis Grizzlies' Yuta Watanabe (12) drives against Golden State Warriors' Jacob Evans III (10) during the fourth quarter of their NBA game at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, Dec. 17, 2018. The Golden State Warriors defeated the Memphis Grizzlies 110-93. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
Lance Stephenson #6 of the Los Angeles Lakers is guarded by Jacob Evans III #10 of the Golden State Warriors during their preseason game at T-Mobile Arena on October 10, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Lakers defeated the Warriors 123-113. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
New Golden State Warriors player Jacob Evans III takes part in a press conference on Monday, June 25, 2018, in Oakland, Calif. Evans was drafted with the 28th overall pick in the first round of the 2018 NBA Draft by the Golden State Warriors. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group)
Kerr also addressed power forward Kevon Looney, who has missed a lot of time this season and, in the last year, has dealt with a painful chest contusion, hamstring strain and neuropathic condition.
“Loon’s been an important part of our team the last couple of years,” Kerr said. “On a team that is so new, with so many young guys, we need as much continuity as possible and Loon provides that — not just with his experience but with the way he is anyway.“
“He’s a worker. He’s a guy who gets it, understands it. He has a good feel for the game and very little if any maintenance at all. With Loon, it’s just a matter of him getting healthy and then finding his rhythm again.”
Looney is the Warriors’ most experienced center and was the opening day starter. While his return will be a welcome addition to a team lacking in institutional knowledge, it will also change a front court rotation that is the deepest of any positional unit on the team.