Taran Armstrong has reportedly added 17 pounds of muscle since joining the Warriors in February. We can safely assume it’s 50 percent Vegemite.
There’s a training camp ritual that NBA observers look forward to. Inevitably, when players are discussing their summer vacations, one player will claim to have added “15 pounds of muscle.” It even spawned a tradition Lang Whitaker called “MUSCLEWATCH” where observers track which players at their various media days claim to have added the mythical 15 pounds.
But everything is accelerated in today’s National Basketball Association, with blockbuster trades being announced the morning of Game 7 of the NBA Finals and multiple free agents re-signing well ahead of the official start of free agency. Which is why Taran Armstrong, the Golden State Warriors’ Tasmanian two-way guard, announced his own gains months before the official start of MUSCLEWATCH.
Taran Armstrong says he has gained 17 pounds of muscle since the Warriors signed him to a two-way contract in late February
Armstrong stayed in the Bay after the season and has been working out at Chase Center almost every day
— Dalton Johnson (@DaltonJ_Johnson) June 30, 2025
That’s right. Training camp doesn’t start until September, and Armstrong is already up to a whopping 17 pounds of muscle. He still has most of the summer to add more!
You might ask, how do we know that all the weight he added was muscle? The answer is, don’t worry about it. It’s muscle, OK?
The added muscle gives Armstrong excellent size at the point guard position. When the Warriors signed the 23-year-old guard, he was listed at 6-foot-6 and just under 200 pounds. Now we can assume he’s up to 215 — with three muscle-building months to go! Armstrong told Dalton Johnson that he’s been working out (and clearly lifting a lot) at the Chase Center since the season ended. He’s now roughly the same size as Jalen Williams of the Oklahoma City Thunder, for example, meaning he’s ready to drop 40 points in an NBA Finals game. Right?
In all seriousness, one big advantage of going to the NBA compared to other leagues or colleges is the access to trainers and world-class equipment. The NBA is simply the most athletic basketball league in the world and Armstrong appears to have embraced his opportunity. Andrew Bogut called Armstrong, “a fighter, aggressive, really good at getting two feet in the paint and finishing,” and his added bulk should help him play the same style that got him to the free throw line Down Under.
His ability to get on the court for the Warriors may depend most on his ability to play defense in the NBA, so at least he’ll be less likely to be bullied. He’ll also need to be able to hit threes, so if the team was worried about him lacking the strength to send the ball 22-24 feet in the air, worry no more!
Based on the current exchange rate for dollars, $17 Australian is worth $11.18 American. but even if Armstrong has only gained 11.18 pounds of muscle, that’s still pretty good. Perhaps he and his countryman, Alex Toohey, can become workout buddies this summer, blasting Crowded House and chugging Vegemite-infused smoothies in the weight room as they get bloody swole.
The bar has been set: 17 pounds of muscle is now the mark to beat. We will have to wait until training camp to see how Chet Holmgren, Jabari Smith, Jr., and Brandon Miller respond to the challenge.