For Donte DiVincenzo, the last 14 months have come with ups and downs as well as an extra layer of perseverance. Before recently signing with the Warriors on July 8 in free agency, DiVincenzo spent the last 25 games of the 2021–22 NBA season playing for the Kings after he was traded from the Bucks in a four-team trade that sent Serge Ibaka to Milwaukee on Feb. 10.
Prior to his short stint in Sacramento, DiVincenzo had only been back on the court for games for a little over a month. He missed the first two months of last season as he was still recovering from surgery to his left ankle after suffering the injury in the Bucks’ 113–84 Game 3 against the Heat in the opening round of the 2021 NBA playoffs.
As DiVincenzo embarks on a new opportunity, he spoke with Steph Curry before coming to Golden State. He said the 2022 Finals MVP gave him an air of confidence going into next season, especially with him recently coming back from injury.
“He said, ‘We know you can play,’” DiVincenzo said, per The Athletic’s Anthony Slater. “‘You know you can play. Just gotta show everybody for a year that you can play.’”
In his first two games against the Heat in the 2021 playoffs, he combined for eight points, 17 rebounds and eight assists. During the 2021 regular season, he averaged 10.4 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game.
When he returned to the court for Milwaukee, DiVincenzo got off to a slow start, recording his lowest field goal percentage (33%) of his career. “I was still trying to get traction and getting traded … it weighs on you,” DiVincenzo said.
In Sacramento, he averaged his second-highest points per game (10.3) and his highest assist mark per game of his career. But, with a full offseason, DiVincenzo aims to get acclimated with the Warriors’ system with plans that everything is headed in the right direction.
Coming off its recent NBA title, DiVincenzo joins a Warriors’ team that will look different next season in its quest to go after another NBA championship. Key contributors to Golden State’s championship run—Gary Payton II, Otto Porter Jr., Damion Lee and Juan Toscano-Anderson—have signed deals with other NBA teams during NBA free agency.
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