TORONTO — Zaza Pachulia has spent past offseasons working toward his MBA, serving as the style editor for Hoop magazine, running several businesses in his native Tbilisi, Georgia, and traveling with the NBA’s “Basketball Without Borders” outreach initiative.
“You can always add something to your knowledge and experience,” Pachulia said after the Warriors’ practice Tuesday night. “I think we can always do better personally and professionally.”
This desire to challenge himself was part of the reason Pachulia rebuffed far more lucrative offers in July to sign a one-year, $2.9 million deal with Golden State. After 13 NBA seasons without reaching a conference finals, he had no qualms being the least notable player in his new team’s starting lineup.