Turiaf Officially A Warrior

The deadline for the Lakers to match the offer sheet signed by restricted free agent Ronny Turiaf and the Golden State Warriors has come and gone. The Lakers failed to match the offer within seven days of the signing. Turiaf will make approximately $17 million over the next four years. It was no surprise that the Lakers didn’t match this offer, especially because it’s frontloaded. The team’s free agency priority remains signing Sasha Vujacic and that may require the entire mid-level exception. Turiaf was a solid role player for the Lake Show last season, but he provided energy more than anything else. He doesn’t have much of a skill set and doesn’t project to ever be a starter in the NBA, but he does provide a spark off the bench, good locker room presence and a lot of hustle.

Hustle, though, is not worth $17 million. If the Lakers hope to re-sign Vujacic or pull of a deal for Ron Artest, letting Turiaf go was a no-brainer. The Warriors overpaid him and it’s entirely possible that his contract becomes one that we’ll look at in three years and wonder how he landed it. He was a good energy player and a guy who was always cheering from the bench, but that doesn’t warrant the kind of money he got.

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