2024 Warriors Player Previews: Reece Beekman

The Warriors have an intriguing defensive prospect in two-way Virginia guard Reece Beekman

The Golden State Warriors still haven’t made their final decisions on who will ultimately receive the team’s three two-way contracts. But right now, one of those spots belongs to Reece Beekman, the University of Virginia guard who was the ACC Defensive Player of the Year two years running. He didn’t get drafted, but it wasn’t for want of putting up big defensive numbers.

That tweet is from 2023, but don’t worry, Beekman had 212 assists, 68 steals and 17 blocks in his senior year at Virginia as well. Those block numbers aren’t huge, but it’s impressive considering Beekman measured at 6’1.25” barefoot at the draft combine. He also has a 6-foot-6-inch wingspan and a three-foot vertical leap. Basically, Beekman is a good athlete, and he racks up a lot of stocks (steals + blocks).

So why was a defensive marvel like Beekman, who won the ACC DPOY over his Cavalier teammate Ryan Dunn (No. 28 pick to the Phoenix Suns, not the legendary “Jackass” star) available as an undrafted free agent? It’s because until his senior year, Beekman didn’t crack ten points per game. He dished the ball without committing many turnovers, but Virginia’s slow-paced, ponderous offense didn’t exactly say “NBA-ready.”

Last season, he upped his scoring to 14.3 points per game, and his assists to 6.2 per game. He shot 48.7% from the field and from three-point range he was...a really good defensive guard. Beekman made 31% of his shots behind the arc, not great for the shorter college line. Granted, he did that for a team with very little spacing — Dunn shot 20% from deep — but it’s tough to make it in the NBA as a sub-6-foot-2 guard who doesn’t shoot threes.

He does dunk, and emphatically enough that it impressed Steph Curry.

Let’s watch some Beekman highlights from last season.

Here’s how Beekman fits the Warriors:

They love players from major college programs

In the Joe Lacob era, the Warriors have brought in players from Michigan State, North Carolina, UCLA, Kansas, Michigan, and Indiana. Back in 2022, they gave a two-way deal to another UVA point guard, Ty Jerome. Perhaps because Steve Kerr runs a fairly complicated offensive system, the team looks for players from colleges with systems. Or they want players familiar with a coach who may arbitrarily award or take away playing time!

He plays defense

It’s not complicated why the Warriors would want to take a flyer on a tenacious on-ball defender after a season where their defense was decidedly mediocre, and the team had trouble getting steals, finishing 23rd in the league.

He takes care of the ball

Beekman may not be a fancy ballhandler, but he also didn’t turn the ball over much. Perhaps you haven’t noticed this, but throwing the ball away for no reason has been a bit of a problem for the Warriors for the last decade or so. Beekman should at least not exacerbate this issue.

His most similar players have injury histories

Beekman could be viewed as a poor man’s Gary Payton II, with his dunking ability and defense-first game, helped by some of the biggest hands of any point guard at the combine. But Payton played only 66 games over the last two seasons. De’Anthony Melton is nearly the same height as Beekman, and he missed 44 games last season. It’s hard to imagine Beekman playing much if the team stays healthy, but if one or more rotation players go down, the Warriors could use a player who can approximate what they bring to the team.

That being said, the duplicative nature of Beekman’s talents is one reason he may end up with the Santa Cruz Warriors in favor of a bigger two-way player, like Blake Hinson or Daeqwon Plowden. The team clearly likes Beekman, but they may prefer an additional wing player instead of a guard, or a scorer over a defender. Two-way deals are never a certainty in the NBA and definitely not with the Warriors.

No matter how things shake out, expect to see Beekman getting a lot of steals for the Santa Cruz Warriors this season. And maybe for the big team as well.

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