Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr is giving Damian Jones the first crack at the defending champions' wide-open starting position at center, per Connor Letourneau of the San Fransisco Chronicle.

If today was the Warriors’ preseason opener, Kerr said he’d start Damian Jones at center. Wants to see how Jones fares with the starters.

Golden State has three players capable of rotating in the middle while All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins recover from an Achilles injury that prematurely ended his 2017-18 campaign. Reports have been promising as they indicate that Cousins is ahead of schedule in rehab. Then again, there's absolutely no need for the Warriors to rush their prized big man.

Jordan Bell and Kevon Looney have all seen their fair share of exposure as the Warriors' center from last season, leaving Jones as the only question mark for Kerr.

via Letourneau:

“They played huge roles for us deep into the playoffs. We know what they can do, but we want to see what Damian can do. We also have to make a decision on his contract, but we’d like to give him a chance with our starters.”

Both Bell and Looney were able to shine in their own ways last year; Jones could very well do the same. The seven-footer out of Vanderbilt hardly made his presence felt in 2017-18, playing in only 15 games for the Warriors. He did show flashes of being a solid contributor for the Santa Cruz Warriors in the G League where he normed 15.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 2.2 blocks per contest.

Golden State will go toe-to-toe against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday at Oracle Arena.