Draymond Green Predicted to Leave Warriors in Summer, Lakers Suitors

Getty Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green hugs LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Draymond Green has spent his entire 11-year NBA career with the Golden State Warriors. Along the way, he’s won four NBA Championships, made just as many All-Star appearances, and has even taken home the Defensive Player of the Year award.

Green’s 11th season in The Bay could very well be his last. The 33-year-old has a $27.6 million player option that he can elect to decline at the end of the year, making him a free agent.

Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley recently included the Warriors forward on a list of players that could “realistically” join a new team this summer.

When discussing Green’s future with the Dubs, Buckley explained that the team may not be interested in offering him another lucrative contract, should he decide to opt out this summer.

“Green just turned 33. Ditto for Klay Thompson, who will be entering the final year of his deal next season. Steph (Curry) turns 35 on March 14. The Warriors have also already recommitted to Poole and Andrew Wiggins. They might be flush, but are they flush enough to carry $24-plus million salaries for five players?” Buckley questioned.”

He then presented the possible scenarios where Green sticks with Golden State for at least another year.

“Maybe the Warriors gut it out for another year and confront the awkward and tough questions later,” he wrote. “Perhaps Green re-signs for cheaper than we think. More likely, maybe Thompson is the one accepting a hometown discount in his next deal.”

Buckley concluded by touching on the impact of the altercation, where Green punched teammate Jordan Poole in the face, earlier this year.

“Collateral damage still feels inevitable. That could come in the form of a Poole trade over the summer. But it could—it might—manifest with Green shopping around for more lucrative opportunities than Golden State is prepared to offer.”

Buckley listed the Los Angeles Lakers, Indiana Pacers, and Houston Rockets as potential suitors for Green if he was to leave the Warriors.

Warriors Could Blow Up Roster If Bounced Early From Playoffs

The possibility of Golden State’s roster looking different next season, isn’t something that’s yet to be discussed.

The Athletic’s Tim Kawakami hinted that the Warriors could make some big changes, should they be bounced from this season’s playoffs early on.

He tweeted that any player not named Curry, could be moved in the offseason.

“If they don’t get far in the postseason, I think everyone on the roster not named Curry will be potentially movable,” he said, after he was asked if the team may look to move on from Poole.

Proposal Sees Warriors Trade Jordan Poole to Toronto

If Golden State was to swing a deal involving the young guard, it could mirror the trade proposed by Heavy Sports’ Jack Simone.

Simone’s idea looked like this:

Warriors receive: Pascal Siakam

Toronto Raptors receive: Jordan Poole, Moses Moody, 2026 1st-Round Pick (Swap), 2027 1st-Round Pick, 2029 1st-Round Pick (Top-4 Protected)

Simone then broke down the Raptors’ motivations to move on from the star forward.

“A trade such as this one would see the Raptors completely blow up their roster in favor of planning for the future,” he wrote. “They could potentially get more picks in a separate deal, but the picks Golden State would be giving up could be very valuable. By the time 2029, or even 2027 rolls around, there’s no telling how good the Warriors will be. Curry will likely be retired by then, and would Siakam even still be on the roster? That’s a risk Toronto could be willing to take.”

According to Simone, the Warriors’ angle would be centered around the idea of giving Curry another run at a title before he calls it quits.

“Golden State would have to have some sort of reassurance that Siakam would want to re-sign, as he would be heading into the last year of his deal, but his addition would undoubtedly make them a title team. The starting lineup of Curry, Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, Draymond Green, and Siakam would be a defensive monster, and they would still have Kevon Looney, Donte DiVincenzo, Jonathan Kuminga, and others coming off the bench. Giving up their picks is a giant risk, but if they want to help Curry make one more run at a title, this could be their best bet.”