SAN FRANCISCO — The Warriors are facing a roster crunch and, by February’s trade deadline, may trade a key contributor in order to keep another.

Guards Damion Lee and Ky Bowman, a starter and key reserve for the Warriors this season, are both on two-way contracts that will force them to spend the rest of their season with the team’s G League affiliate in Santa Cruz if the organization cannot find a way to convert them to standard deals.

Because of the hard cap, the Warriors cannot sign either without first moving a salary to another team. The most logical trade candidate is guard Alec Burks, as Bay Area News Group has reported for weeks, and the front office is willing to trade him in order to keep one of Bowman or Lee, both of whom are viewed as contributors beyond this season.

As of Saturday, Bowman has 11 days remaining in Golden State while Lee has 12. Under their two-way contracts, they are allotted only 45 days of NBA service, while the rest of their seasons must be spent with the G League affiliate.

Bowman has spent time in Santa Cruz — and is returning this weekend after playing in Friday’s win over the Suns — as the Warriors look to maintain his days for as long as possible.

“We’re going to run into an issue here in a couple of weeks and it’s just the way it is,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “But both guys are playing really well and we feel like, as a team, we’re playing well.”

With only $375,000 under the hard cap, Golden State needs to create more cap space in order to add Bowman or Lee to the 15-man roster. Burks ($2.4 million), forward Glenn Robinson III ($1.9 million) and center Marquese Chriss ($1.7 million, non-guaranteed) were all signed using the veteran minimum, so the Warriors could trade them to another team without taking salary back.

However Robinson, 25, and Chriss, 22, are more likely to figure into the Warriors’ long-term plans than the 28-year-old Burks. He also provides the most value to a playoff contender looking to bolster its bench. In 30 games, he averaged 15.5 points on 42.5% shooting.

Burks, who played for three different teams last season after spending the first seven years of his career with the Jazz, has scored in double-digits in 14 of his last 15 games. On Friday, he scored nine points on 4-of-4 shooting in the fourth quarter to help push the Warriors to a comeback win over the Suns.

In return for the Burks, the Warriors could seek a draft pick or prospect stashed overseas, both of which would not count against the salary cap. A player, even one on a rookie contract, would make it difficult to sign Bowman or Lee.

“It’s a complicated process with various things that could happen and various ways we can try and keep them both,” Kerr said. “It’s more behind the scenes, figuring out what is next.”