NBA News: Golden State Warriors bolster guard depth by signing Leandro Barbosa

By Staff Writer

Aug 29, 2014 07:37 AM EDT

Though not the player that he once was, the 31 year old Leandro Barbosa has drawn interrest from several teams this offseason. The Golden State Warriors were among the teams that saw value in Barbosa as a veteran leader and scorer off the bench and ESPN's Marc Stein reprots that both sides have a greed on a year deal:

‎Brazil guard Leandro Barbosa has reached an agreement to sign with the Golden State Warriors for the upcoming season, ESPN.com has learned. After Barbosa received initial interest from the Miami Heat, Golden State has secured a commitment from the 31-year-old on a one-year deal at the veteran minimum, according to NBA front-office sources.

The Warriors, who have been looking to add more depth in the guard position this offseason, were happy to steal Barbosa away from the Heat prior to the start of the FIBA World Cup in Spain. Barbosa will be integrated in a Warriors back court that features big names in Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson and Timothy Rapp of Bleacher Report thinks that he will provide great value to the team:

While Barbosa is past his prime at this stage in his career, he still can provide an injection of scoring off the bench in limited minutes. Additionally, he offers the Warriors another guard comfortable handling the rock in the backcourt, along with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Shaun Livingston and Brandon Rush.

Sam Sorkin of Golden State of Mind reveals that the Warrior's new coaching staff will have plenty of time to determine how the Brazilian blur will fit into head coach Steve Kerr's offense by watching him play in the FIBA World Cup and in preseason games as well. With Barbosa's experience, Sorkin predicts that he will likely come off the bench to add scoring and a veteran, stabilizing presence. 

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