Report: Jermaine O’Neal interested in return to Warriors

Parity in basketball died on Monday, and the body isn’t even cold yet. But that’s not stopping the championship-hungry veteran sharks from beginning to circle the waters.

According to a report by Marcus Thompson of Bay Area News Group on Monday, six-time All-Star big man Jermaine O’Neal is considering a return to the Warriors.

Speaking of centers the Warriors could get: I'm told Jermaine O'Neal is game for a return to Warriors

— Marcus Thompson (@ThompsonScribe) July 4, 2016

O’Neal is 37 years old and hasn’t played since the 2013-14 season. But his interest in returning to Golden State, where he made his last NBA stop, probably goes without saying after they shook up the sports world on Monday by landing four-time scoring champion Kevin Durant.

The 18-year veteran averaged a serviceable 7.9 points per game and 5.5 rebounds per game during his lone season with the Warriors. At this point however, O’Neal is probably washed up from being washed up. Still, Golden State needs to sign big men at a low-end cost after trading Andrew Bogut to the Mavericks and renouncing the rights to Festus Ezeli in order to accommodate Durant. Throwing the veteran’s minimum at an elder statesman who is hungry for his first championship and is already somewhat familiar with the ethos of the team could be a worthwhile investment for them.

H/T theScore