SAN FRANCISCO – LJ Cryer stood tall, all ten toes on the gargantuan Warriors logo at Chase Center, and stared down the Portland defense.
The rookie took two dribbles to his right. Then a cross to his left. Another dribble. Another cross to his right.
He had practiced this. Trained for this.
“I trust my ability to get a basket at the end of the clock, and the ball found me,” Cryer said. “Sometimes, you have to go out there and make a play.”
One more hard dribble with his right hand. A bump to throw his defender off.
Then a drifting floater with his right hand, fading left while aiming for a basket a dozen feet away.
Swish. 30 seconds on the clock. A four-point lead.
A delirious Chase Center crowd that had watched its Warriors claw back from down 20 in the fourth quarter to earn a 129-123 victory on Wednesday night.
Cryer, an undrafted rookie fighting for a roster spot, getting the same postgame treatment as two-time MVP and franchise icon in Steph Curry is a laughable concept on its face.
But for his efforts, he was whisked to the podium for the first postgame interview. Before any of the veterans or even Kerr.
From the end of the bench to the man being peppered with questions from the Bay Area’s various media outlets. After an epic fourth-quarter takeover, it was a well-deserved honor.
Golden State Warriors’ Trayce Jackson-Davis (32), Golden State Warriors’ Moses Moody (4), Golden State Warriors’ Pat Spencer (61), Golden State Warriors’ Seth Curry and Golden State Warriors’ Brandin Podziemski (2) look on from the bench as their teammates take on the Portland Trail Blazers in the fourth quarter of an NBA preseason game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group) basket
An undrafted rookie out of Houston, a 24-year-old from Katy who just needed a chance, had earned that moment after such a victory.
Cryer left campus as a winner. First at Morton Ranch high school, where he set the Houston-area public school record with 3,488 points.
Then at Baylor, where he won a national championship in 2021 – knocking out Moses Moody’s Arkansas squad in the process.
And finally, at the University of Houston, where he led the Cougars to a title game appearance in March under the watchful eye of Kelvin Sampson, catching the attention of Warriors coach Steve Kerr and Co.
“I personally like guys who played for someone like Kelvin Sampson,” Kerr said. “They’ve been taught tough defense, toughness, how to win, and I like guys who have played in big games that matter.”
Cryer had tried to become a sponge in training camp, gleaning any bit of knowledge he could from Steph Curry and the veterans he grew up idolizing.
Those Hall of Fame lessons had not translated into tangible results in his first preseason game, an 0 of 6 stinker against Los Angeles.
Cryer was frustrated. Had he let his chance slip away?
“I know its preseason, but I’m treating it like it’s a real game,” Cryer said. “Because, you know, you get limited opportunities. I’ve got to take advantage of them.”
Teammates would not let him wallow in frustration. In the NBA, there is no time to let one bad performance linger.
He would get another chance. The question was, what would he do with it?
Well, in a fourth quarter in which he played all of his 12 minutes of gametime, Cryer put up 14 points to spur a comeback that had Chase Center rocking like it was a playoff game.
It was a MVP-type performance from a kid who was desperate to make an impact, something to differentiate himself from the hundreds of other 6-foot-nothing guards who played four or five years of college, have nice jumpers and underwhelming athleticism.
If his teammate’s prediction comes true, it will not be Cyer’s last great moment in pro basketball.
“He can shoot the cover off the ball, and I would love to have him up here for some games,” backcourt mate Pat Spencer said. “But if he plays down in the G League, he’s going to light it up.”
Golden State Warriors’ LJ Cryer looks to pass against the Los Angeles Lakers in the third quarter of an NBA Summer League game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Saturday, July 5, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)