This season hasn’t quite gone according to plan for the Golden State Warriors. They brought home their fourth NBA Championship in eight years last season, but things went downhill. This year, they struggled to win on the road, and their bench unit was subpar.
If things don’t work out for them in the postseason, they could consider making some trades to revamp the roster this summer. And according to sources who spoke with Sean Deveney of Heavy Sports, they may try to trade Draymond Green regardless.
“They could trade Draymond if he opts into the final year of his contract. He knows that. They know that,” a Western Conference executive told Deveney. “But even if they have a good playoff run, trading Draymond is going to be on the table.”
Green’s future with the Warriors has been in question ever since his preseason incident with Jordan Poole. As noted, he would need to opt in to his player option, but if he decides to do so, a trade could potentially be beneficial for both parties.
Despite the rumblings, Green has still put together a solid season for the Warriors. He appeared in 73 of the team’s 82 games this year and played 31.5 minutes per contest. Green averaged 8.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 6.8 assists per game on 52.7% shooting from the field and 30.5% shooting from behind the three-point line.
Plus, according to other sources who spoke with Deveney, the Warriors hope Green opts in so they have the option of trading him.
“The hope is that Draymond just decides to opt into the final year of his deal, and they can proceed from there,” a West GM told Deveney. “You can trade him at that point, you don’t have to worry about a sign-and-trade and all the restrictions that come with that. You can work with him to find a place he wants to go. Or you can say to him, let’s give it one more run, be a leader, let’s win a championship here, and we’ll pay you.
Draymond Green Sends Warning on Warriors Future
In addition to the outside rumblings, even Green has mentioned the possibility of leaving the Warriors sometime soon, as he hinted at the idea during an interview with Taylor Rooks of Bleacher Report.
“If you don’t get to know the business, then you can be blindsided and be, like, ‘Oh man, everything I’ve done, I’d thought I’d be there forever,” Green said. “I would love to be [with the Warriors forever]. [But] I understand the luxury tax. I understand you’ve got these young guys and contracts up, and they have to be paid. I understand all of those things. And so, just for me, that’s what I mean by the writing’s on the wall.”
Draymond Green Predicted to Opt Out
But while Green opting in may help the Warriors, Keith Smith of Spotrac doesn’t think he’ll take that route.
“I think he’s gonna opt-out for sure,” Smith said via 95.7 The Game’s Alex Espinoza. “I don’t know that he leaves, though. I think this might be one where he opts out, and all sides kinda realize, ‘Hey, we’re better together than we would be apart.’ And then come together on some kind of more reasonable contract that keeps him on Golden State for probably the rest of his career.”
