As the Warriors have reluctantly ripped apart some of their championship fabric, they have given various signals they plan to pay tribute to those players.
Not only has that applied to Kevin Durant and Andre Iguodala. That has also applied to Shaun Livingston, whom the Warriors formally waived on Wednesday before the last year of a $7 million contract would have become fully guaranteed.
“We thank Shaun for his immense contributions, wish him well in his next chapter and look forward to honoring him at some point in the future,” Warriors majority owner Joe Lacob said in a statement.
The Warriors did not clarify how they plan to honor Livingston, who became a key reserve for the Warriors’ three NBA championships in five Finals appearances since joining the team in 2015 for his steadiness on the court and in the locker room. After Durant announced he would leave for the Brooklyn Nets, Lacob said that “no player will ever wear #35 for the Warriors again.” After the Warriors traded Iguodala to the Memphis Grizzlies for a $17.2 trade exception and to clear their bloated payroll, Lacob added the Warriors plan to retire Iguodala’s No. 9 jersey.
It might be a stretch for the Warriors to retire Livingston’s No. 34 jersey. He averaged 5.4 points, 2.4 assists and 2.0 rebounds in 17.5 minutes per game during his five years with the Warriors. Last season, Livingston averaged a career-low in points (4.0) and second-lowest in assists (1.8), while missing a combined 16 games because of various ailments to his left knee, right foot and neck. That partly explains why the Warriors waived Livingston, whose remaining $2.2 million salary will be stretched through three seasons.
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The Warriors never valued Livingston for his numbers, though. They valued him for his presence. Livingston became only second player in NBA history along with former Celtics forward Tommy Heinsohn to be on a team that have five consecutive Finals appearances.
“His resume indicates that he’s one of only a handful of players in league history to win at least three NBA championships,” Lacob said in a statement. “He has been a tremendous credit to the Warriors organization and our community for the last five years and has always carried himself as a professional.”
The Warriors also admired Livingston for how he handled what could have been career-ending injuries. Three years after the Los Angeles Clippers selected Livingston No. 4 overall in the 2004 NBA draft directly out of high school, Livingston broke his left leg and dislocated his left knee cap. He also had injuries to his anterior cruciate ligament, posterior cruciate ligament and lateral meniscus as well as his medial collateral ligament.
Livingston missed 101 of 246 regular-season games in his first three seasons. After receiving clearance to resume playing basketball in the 2008 offseason, Livingston then bounced around with nine NBA teams and one Development League affiliate before joining the Warriors for their 2015 NBA championship run.
“Shaun was a huge part of three NBA championship teams with the Warriors, but his overall journey is what is most remarkable,” Lacob said in a statement. “He overcame incredible odds following a devastating injury, wore nine different NBA uniforms during his comeback, had a stint in the D-League and, fittingly, ended up being a major contributor on one of the best teams in NBA history.”
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