Warriors sign Kwame Brown to 1-year deal

Kwame Brown and the Warriors reached an agreement on a one-year, $7 million deal Tuesday, a signing that was met with mixed reactions around the league.

Compared with other No. 1 overall picks or with the Warriors' other free-agent targets, Tyson Chandler or DeAndre Jordan, the signing doesn't look very favorable. In context with the Warriors' needs for a post defender and big-man depth, however, the signing makes a lot of sense.

"They've had great, exciting teams that we've all loved to watch, but when you start talking about the playoffs, you have to play a little defense," said Steve Smith, a 14-year NBA guard who is an analyst for NBA TV. "Maybe Kwame Brown is not Tyson Chandler, but he's a good start in thinking about that defensive mind-set."

With Andris Biedrins as the only center on their roster, the Warriors aggressively chased Chandler at the start of the free-agency period. When Chandler chose New York instead, the Warriors made a $43 million offer to Jordan that was matched by the Clippers.

Desperate to get a center out of a weak free-agent crop, the Warriors settled on Brown, this generation's poster boy of an underachieving top pick. The 6-foot-11, 270-pound 29-year-old has played for five teams in 10 NBA seasons, averaging 6.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 0.6 of a block per game.