Shaun Livingston

As a second-unit contributor for the Warriors’ two championship teams over the last three years, Livingston has rarely popped on the stat sheet, but his 6-foot-7 frame and advanced court sense have allowed him to hold his own against more dynamic point guards and keep the offense humming when Stephen Curry is resting or needs a break from primary ball-handling duties. Perhaps as a byproduct of the now-departed Ian Clark taking on an expanded role off the bench, Livingston saw his minutes (17.7 per game), points (5.1) and assists (1.8) take small steps backward in 2016-17. Even so, the 32-year-old veteran was his typically efficient self when the ball was in his hands, shooting a career-high 54.7 percent from the floor while averaging a career-low 0.8 turnovers per game. With the Warriors needing to create cap space this past summer for new deals for higher-priority players in Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Andre Iguodala, it looked as though Livingston might have headed elsewhere in free agency, but Golden State was able to find room to retain him on a three-year, $24 million deal. Livingston will reclaim his familiar role with the second unit, and could see a slight increase in his minutes with few viable point-guard options on the roster beyond Curry. However, in the event Curry is sidelined with an injury for an extended period, Livingston would likely struggle to bring value outside of deeper formats. In his three starts last season, Livingston averaged just 7.3 points, 3.7 assists and 1.7 rebounds in 25.0 minutes per game, numbers that weren’t a substantial upgrade from what he offered as a bench player.

As the Warriors emerged the last three years as a playoff team, the need arose for quality depth at all positions. Finding someone to spell Stephen Curry at point guard was the final piece. After Jarrett Jack left town following the 2012-13 season, the Warriors limped through 2013-14 with Steve Blake and Toney Douglas. In the offseason last summer, management handed Livingston three years and $16 million. Livingston has made his living as a savvy distributor and facilitator who can do more than just back up Curry for 12 minutes a night. He defends, plays off the ball, and at 6-7, can post up smaller guards. Last season, he averaged 5.9 points, 2.3 rebounds. and 3.3 assists in 19 minutes per game in a career-high 78 games. He's missed a total of 10 games the last two seasons, a two-year stretch unparalleled previously in his career. His height makes him a perfect fit for any variation of head coach Steve Kerr's small-ball lineup that became so effective for Golden State last year. If Kerr deploys that lineup more frequently, there could be a slight bump in Livingston's playing time.

In signing with Golden State in the offseason, Livingston joins his ninth organization in 10 NBA seasons. The former fourth-overall pick (2004) is comfortable in his own skin; he's a backup point guard who can shoot a little; and he knows how to run a team. For the Nets last season, Livingston played in a career-high 76 games and started a career-high 54 games, while experiencing a mini renaissance. He averaged 8.3 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.2 steals, and 0.4 blocks in 26 minutes per game. Those numbers won't make fantasy owners salivate, but it earned him a three-year deal in the offseason. He's a perfect solution for the Warriors, who lacked a legitimate backup point guard last season. Livingston complements both splash brothers. He can defend and take care of the ball when playing alongside Stephen Curry and handle the ball when playing with Klay Thompson. Livingston is unlikely to get the type of run he got last season with Brooklyn, so factor that in when considering him as an option for your team. A toe injury originally suffered at the end of last season eventually required surgery, but he's expected to be back in time for training camp.

Yet another veteran acquisition, Livingston will suit up for his eighth NBA team and sixth in the last five seasons. After being released in December by the Wizards last season, he was picked up by the Cavaliers and finished the year averaging 7.2 points on 51 percent shooting. Still just 28, he'll be a more-than-capable third point guard for the Nets, who could use his 6-7 frame to create some intriguing mismatches.

It seems like he's been around forever, but Livingston's still just 27 years old. It's hard to say what the former No. 4 overall pick would have been were it not for a horrific knee injury, but he's settled in as a backup who can score efficiently and handle the ball. He'll fight for minutes backing up Jeremy Lin at the point.

Livingston played in a career-high 73 games with the Bobcats last season before being sent to the Bucks in the Stephen Jackson trade. With both Brandon Jennings and Beno Udrih ahead of him on the depth chart, his playing time will be minimal.

Livingston, whose career almost ended in 2007 due to a brutal knee injury, played some of his best basketball for Washington last season. He is now in a position to compete with D.J. Augustin for the Bobcats' starting point guard position.

It appears Livingston is nearing a full recovery from the knee injury that almost ended his career. Whether he'll be the same player he was prior to the injury remains to be seen. But he was mildly surprising in eight April games with the Thunder last season, averaging 24 minutes, 7.8 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game while shooting 53.8 percent from the field. He'll back up Russell Westbrook at point guard.

Livingston dislocated his kneecap and tore the ACL, MCL, PCL and lateral meniscus in his knee in late February during one of the more gruesome injuries in basketball history. It would be shocking if he returned this season, and will probably be a shell of himself if he does. Don't count on him for any fantasy production this year.

You can’t watch Livingston play for five minutes without seeing his potential – 6-7 point guards with tremendous court vision just don’t occur in nature terribly often. But Livingston hasn’t reached his potential just yet, for a variety of reasons. First off, he’s only in his third year out of high school – in a perfect world, he’d be a junior in college. Second, he carries less than 190 pounds on that 6-7 frame; it’d be fair to describe him as “waifish.” And third, and probably most significantly, right now he’s playing behind Sam Cassell, and Sam Cassell just led the Clippers to the best season in franchise history. Both Cassell and Livingston are signed for the next two seasons. It will be telling to see whether or not the Clippers attempt to split playing time more evenly between them this year. If not, they might risk making Livingston the next superstar to start his career with the Clippers only to blossom somewhere else.

Livingston showed flashes of Magic Johnson-type potential in his rookie season. Unfortunately, he also missed extensive time due to injury, appearing in only 30 games and starting only 15. Within a year or two, there’s a very good chance that Livingston could be posting triple-double type numbers. For now, he’s well worth a late-round pick on the chance that he wins the regular job over Sam-I-Am Cassell, just based on his unlimited upside.

Marko Jaric is nominally the starter for the Clips, but Livingston is the prize here. Livingston has good size for the position at 6-5, and has a 6-11 wingspan. His court vision is also excellent. If he gets the job out of camp, take a look at Livingston, who may have more upside than anyone in the 2004 draft class.

Has great size for the position. Been compared to Penny Hardaway, but is a much more pure point guard. Great court vision and has an excellent shooting touch.