Warriors Rumors: Pistons' Jon Phelps Joins Front Office as NBA Salary Cap Strategist | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors
The Golden State Warriors have a new voice in the front office.
Anthony Slater of The Athletic reported that the Warriors had hired Jon Phelps as the team's next Cap Strategist and Team Counsel. He will replace Onsi Saleh in the role, as Saleh departed to become the assistant general manager of the Atlanta Hawks.
Anthony Slater @anthonyVslaterSource: The Warriors are hiring Jon Phelps into their front office as their cap strategist and team counsel. He's been with the Pistons organization for about a decade. Phelps fills an important vacancy left by Onsi Saleh, who left for a high-ranking position in Atlanta.
Phelps had been with the Pistons organization since 2014 and had most recently served as the team's Senior Director of Basketball Strategy.
Phelps had previously served as a Basketball Strategy Analyst for Detroit, and had been the Director of Basketball Operations and General Manager for the team's G-League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Drive.
The Warriors have an extremely important offseason coming up, as Klay Thompson is set to hit unrestricted free agency. Golden State currently has negative cap space, per Spotrac, and the team could have a different look next season.
The team has paid $687 million in luxury tax payments over the past eight seasons, and Warriors majority owner Joe Lacob has expressed a desire to get the team under the luxury tax.
This could be where Phelps focuses his attention in his role as the cap strategist. Detroit has not had to pay a luxury tax during Phelps' time with the franchise, and having a new voice could help the team make decisions with less sentimental value from the dynasty run that saw it win four NBA Championships.
