LAS VEGAS – Putting the ball in the basket is easy for LJ Cryer.
It has been that way since high school, when the 6-foot guard scored 3,488 points and set a Houston-area public school record. The 24-year-old possesses a quick-trigger jump shot and a desire to get to the hoop.
He made 39.4% of his 3-point attempts as a Warriors rookie last season and averaged 8.2 points per game despite standing just 6 feet tall, showing his skills can translate to the NBA.
When he is healthy, that is.
Cryer scored in double figures in nine of 18 games he played with the Warriors after turning heads in summer league and later Santa Cruz as an undrafted free agent out of Houston. But he also missed 15 games with a back strain, hamstring tightness, injury management, illness and a right ankle sprain that ended his year.
So, this summer in a summer league where most players usually list particular skills-based objectives – shooting efficiently, handling the ball under pressure, guarding the pick-and-roll – as their top goals, Cryer’s No. 1 goal sounded different.
“With me working on my body this summer, and being more healthy, I feel like I’ll take a jump in every aspect of my life,” Cryer said after dishing out five assists on Sunday.
Cryer has plenty of experience taking care of his body after five seasons of Big 12 hoops Baylor and Houston, but the NBA offered him a new level of resources as he approached this offseason.
“Obviously, I had an idea of what to do, but sitting down with the performance staff and getting a detailed plan has helped me a lot,” he said.
With a chance to earn a full-time roster spot, especially with the departure of point guard Pat Spencer, Cryer has made a new commitment to his body. He’s tracking his sleep closely and focusing on his diet.
“The hardest food (to give up),” Cryer said rhetorically before taking a beat to think. “Sweets, like candy and stuff like that.”
Golden State Warriors’ LJ Cryer (18) takes a shot against Los Angeles Lakers’ Arthur Kaluma (47) in the first quarter during a Summer League game at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Friday, July 3, 2026. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
A player saying he is in the best shape of his life midway through the offseason is a reliable trope in pro sports. But the result of a stricter nutrition plan has truly been a slimmer, more explosive version of Cryer.
He scored 25 points against the Mavericks on Friday, cooking Ryan Nemhard and any other guard Dallas tried to put in front of him.
Cryer was the one blasting off screens in the Warriors’ famous split cuts and handoff actions as a reasonable facsimile of Steph Curry.
He put up 11 points per game in under 15 minutes of action per night at the Chase Center California Classic, and has kept up the hot shooting in Las Vegas.
There are plenty of guards in Vegas who can score points with a year of NBA experience, though. What coach Khalid Robinson has truly been impressed by is Cryer’s continued evolution from a microwave scorer to a more well-rounded floor general.
“He picked his spots really well, when to get to the rim, when to pull up, when to kick out to his teammates,” Robinson said after a recent game.
If Cryer’s new diet and conditioning program can keep him on the court, do not be surprised if he begins the season as a member of the Warriors’ rotation.