Warriors give Brandin Podziemski 5-year, $110M extension - ESPN

The Golden State Warriors and starting guard Brandin Podziemski have agreed to a five-year, $110 million contract extension, his agent Bill Duffy told ESPN's Shams Charania, avoiding restricted free agency next summer.

The fully guaranteed deal includes a mutual option in the final season (2031-32) and a trade kicker. The unique mutual option allows either side to opt-in, but not opt-out, of the final season of the deal, allowing both sides to reopen potential extension conversations that offseason.

Podziemski, 23, is entering his fourth season after the Warriors selected him 19th overall in the 2023 NBA Draft. He was the first pick of general manager Mike Dunleavy's tenure and a player Dunleavy and the front office prioritized keeping in the fold.

Podziemski will make $5.6 million this upcoming season in the final year of his rookie deal. That figure will jump up to $18.9 million next season in the first year of his five-year extension. As contract talks intensified in the last month, keeping that initial salary number at a manageable level was an important negotiation point on the Warriors' side, team sources said.

Dunleavy has been protective of the team's 2027-28 cap space, building a roster loaded with expiring contracts while convincing superstar guard Stephen Curry the benefit of taking a $10 million paycut for next season is in maintaining the ability to better transform the roster around Curry via free agency or trade in his final seasons. The Warriors have four tradeable first-round picks.

Podziemski had a projected cap hold next summer of around $17 million, so his first-year salary will slice an extra $1.9 million from what could've been available had they pushed the conversation to restricted free agency.

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