Warriors News: Gary Payton II Signs New Contract 4 Days After Being Waived

The Golden State Warriors have re-signed veteran Gary Payton II after waiving him on Friday, the team announced Tuesday.

The terms of the agreement were not released, per team policy. Payton fills the team's 15th roster spot.

Payton beat out Avery Bradley, Mychal Mulder and Jordan Bell for Golden State's final roster spot. However, he appeared in just one preseason game while coming off hernia surgery.

In that game against the Los Angeles Lakers, Payton scored 12 points and had one steal, one rebound, and a block in 11 minutes.

The 28-year-old appeared in 10 games for the Warriors last season, averaging 2.5 points and 1.1 rebounds in four minutes per game.

After going undrafted in 2016, Payton signed with the Milwaukee Bucks and spent a season and a half with the franchise before being traded to the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2017-18 season.

Payton also spent two seasons with the Washington Wizards from 2018-20. In 71 career games across five seasons, he has averaged 3.4 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.

Payton specializes in defense, and that's something the Warriors needed help with in their backcourt as no one is particularly fixated on defending.

Stephen Curry and Jordan Poole, the Warriors' projected opening-night starters at guard, are brilliant scorers but lack skills on defense, which isn't their top priority.

Last season, the Warriors had Kelly Oubre Jr. and Kent Bazemore to harass defenders. Oubre joined the Charlotte Hornets and Bazemore is now a member of the Los Angeles Lakers.

With Payton on board to open up the 2021-22 season, he'll likely be primarily tasked with providing solid defense in the backcourt. However, he may not see a lot of time on the court.