By T.A. June 20, 2023
Draymond Green is a key player in the establishment of The San Francisco Dynasty. Draymond has helped the Warriors in winning four championship rings in the last eight years (which is a spectacular feat in the League). However, it is possible we have already witnessed Draymond’s last days with the Golden State Franchise, especially after opting out of his player option of $27.5M.
Draymond’s opting for free agency should not be found in any way surprising. From a retrospective standpoint, Free agency may be Draymond’s only way to properly test the waters of his relevance to the league. Is Draymond worth even $27.5M a year from any other team in the NBA? Considering the fact that we may have already witnessed the cutting edge of Draymond’s prime moments in the NBA, The 33-year-old power forward does not seem to currently match the hype that comes with a lucrative contract extension from any team. The Power Forward stats during the 2022/2023 season are actually fair enough – averaging 8.5 points,7.2 rebounds, and 6.8 assists in 31.5 minutes. Nevertheless, looking beyond the lens of stats, the 33-year-old is still one of the most elite defenders in the NBA and one thing most teams lack in the NBA is solid defense.
Over the last couple of years, Draymond has always wanted more from the Warriors, In Fact I’ll argue that Green opting out from the Warriors earlier would have made him much more money. At the onset of the 2022/23 season, it was hinted through Tyler Greenwalt of Yahoo sports that Draymond wanted a max contract extension that will give him about $164M over the next five seasons. With Draymond’s recent $27.5M offer, the Golden state may have overlooked Draymond’s conjectures.
Green does not look like he will be better in any other uniform apart from the Golden State. Notwithstanding, it still looks impossible for the San Francisco franchise to increase whatever they are offering to Draymond by any bit. However, Draymond Green exploring his options will be disastrous to the league if any other team apart from the Warriors (who are worthy championship contenders) offer Draymond about $30M per year. It may seem an unpopular opinion, but it will be terrific to envision how great the Suns roster will look with Draymond Green and a little more depth. The affinity between Draymond and LeBron may also make the Lakers a good fit. However, these are all speculations for now but if we know something about the NBA, speculations are usually the greatest triggers for the main deal, but as we all know it’s still abstract to see any of these teams offering Draymond above $27M.
Jordan Poole is one player that seems forever plagued by Draymond’s presence in Golden state. Poole is currently rumored to be traded, but I do not see that forthcoming either. In Fact, it will be easier to get Draymond out of the way than Poole. The 24-year-Old Poole still has a lot more to offer the Franchise, irrespective of how poor he played in the last series against the Lakers. I think it’s just the best time for the Golden State Warriors to rebuild around Curry and the younger guys on the team. From Hindsight, it is obvious that Golden State can’t retain its veteran players forever. Draymond’s exit decision may not be so bad after all!
