“Don’t tiptoe into a bar fight” was the advice Gonzaga coach Mark Few gave to one of his most productive All-American stars heading into the NBA. Crucially, this player had a reason to listen to his coach because he wasn’t invited to the NBA Draft Combine, then worked out for 13 teams anyway, but still went undrafted. After a strong Summer League outing, Graham Ike has finally broken through.

Initially reported by @Ary_Report on X, Kenzo Fukuda of ClutchPoints confirmed that the Warriors filled their final two-way spot with Ike, alongside LJ Cryer and Malevy Leons. It will be a two-year deal. Despite averaging 19.9 points and 8.0 rebounds per game last season, Ike went undrafted and was offered an Exhibit-10 deal shortly after. The next nine games, though, changed his fate.

Ike, who was the 2025-26 WCC Player of the Year, played in nine Summer League games (including the California Classic) and averaged 10.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.0 block, shooting 48.4 percent from the field and 78.9 percent from the charity stripe.

At the G League Elite Camp, Ike measured 6-foot-9¾ barefoot, with a 7-foot-5 wingspan and a 9-foot-2 standing reach.

How does the two-way contract benefit Ike?

It lets him play for Golden State and Santa Cruz, and, well, Steve Kerr has a strong history of using two-way players. Most recent example: Pat Spencer’s deal became a standard contract last season due to roster injuries, and he got the chance to take full advantage, scoring 7.2 points in 18.6 minutes per game.

The battle for the final two-way spot alongside Cryer and Leons boiled down to Ike and second-round pick (2026) Lajae Jones. However, Insider Brett Siegel wrote that Jones “now appears to be some type of stash prospect for Golden State”. How the two ended up on opposite sides of that decision traces back to draft week…

Golden State picked Michigan’s Yaxel Lendeborg No. 11 on June 23, and he later signed a four-year, $28.1 million deal, per Spotrac. The next night, at No. 54, the Warriors selected Jones, a 6-foot-7 Florida State wing who had already played at Tarleton State, Barton Community College and St. Bonaventure.

On the other hand, Ike, who went undrafted, agreed to an Exhibit-10 deal: a one-year, non-guaranteed minimum contract. In June, Ike called it his “first option” and added that he and his agent mutually agreed that “this was the best decision for me.”

General Manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. also projected a slower timeline for Jones. “We’ll get him through summer league and see how things go and see what happens next year,” he told NBC Sports Bay Area, adding, “We like him as a long-term project.”

Both Ike and Jones then joined the Summer League roster that beat Memphis 94-90 on July 19 to win the Las Vegas title. Across the offseason schedule, Ike’s 7.2 box plus/minus ranked third among rookies, behind Lendeborg (15.9) and Darryn Peterson (7.3).

Before Ike came up, Jones’ best path to a two-way deal was arguably through his defense. Will Richard, the No. 56 pick in 2025, served as a comparable standard. Richard scored 30 points in his first NBA start against Sacramento while Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, and Draymond Green were sidelined.

But the problem for Jones was that the Warriors had players offering different strengths. Cryer already had an established two-way spot, while Leons offered another developmental option. Ike, meanwhile, gave Golden State something more straightforward: additional frontcourt size and depth.

Why this is the best time for a two-way player in Golden State

Golden State has names like Draymond Green, Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis, all over 30 and with injury concerns. In fact, Horford and Porzingis played a combined 77 games last season, and the former can no longer play back-to-backs.

Although the Dubs have not made any splashy signings this offseason, they’ve shaped their two-way unit in such a way that any of Graham Ike, Malevy Leons and LJ Cryer are capable of replacing the aforementioned veterans in the short term.

Even though most two-way players aim to spend most of their time in the G League, don’t be surprised if Steve Kerr turns to them more often than not. That’s because the Warriors are already short-handed, with two important players, Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody, missing until at least January.

In Butler’s case, even a February return was deemed “an optimistic target” by league insider Anthony Slater, who also noted that the Warriors’ medical decision-maker, Rick Celebrini, is known for his “cautious approach.”

Brandin Podziemski will be expected to take on a more expansive attacking role, but even though he played all 82 games last season, his year-over-year improvement in points, assists, and shooting was minimal, as ever, something that has consistently frustrated Dubs Nation.

Amid so many availability and performance-related roadblocks, Graham Ike might just get a meaningful break into actual game time in his first season itself. Kerr even said he planned to take a more holistic approach to the roster.

“I think our depth is the answer,” Kerr said on The Tom Tolbert Show. “We’re going to have to rely on our whole roster, including our two-way players at times. And fortunately, I do feel really good about the guys we have who have kind of filled out the back end of the roster.”

That’s a positive statement by Kerr when you look at it from the perspective of a young player looking to make an impact. The Warriors’ training camp is set to take place in Hawaii from September 29 through October 3. Kerr’s team will then play the Los Angeles Clippers (preseason opener) the next day.