The Golden State Warriors are mostly finished with their offseason, and no doubt, left many disappointed by making no transactions to bring in significant new players other than using their draft picks, one of whom remains unsigned. The Warriors are moving into the sunset of Stephen Curry‘s career, and probably that of Draymond Green along with it, but are pretty much running back the same roster that finished last season with 37 wins a a play-in tournament loss.
Curry is heading into the final year of his contract, and is eligible for an extension late in August. That situation will be watched with some interest, but in the meantime, there is a question as to whether and to what extend the Warriors are set up to change their roster in the coming year via trade–and whether that will mean buying pieces to help win in the short term because the team starts well, or selling pieces for long-term assets because there are struggles.
Draymond Green Does Not Have No-Trade Clause
Tucked into that question is what happened with Green this offseason, after he agreed to opt out of his one-year, $27.7 million contract to give the Warriors flexibility in a chase for free-agent star LeBron James. James did not sign in Golden State, of course, and once his situation was settled, the Warriors circled back and signed Green to the same one-year, $27.7 million for which he’d just opted out.
Under NBA rules, as a veteran signing a one-year deal, Green had a right to put a no-trade clause into his contract. There were some eyebrows raised when the Warriors did not put that in, and that Green did not fight for it to be included. It leaves open the possibility that the Warriors could move Green this season.
Draymond Green Would Not Fight Warrior Trade
But Green downplayed the notion of the no-trade clause not being in his new deal. He acknowledges that he could have demanded it from the Warriors–and perhaps they could have granted it if it had become an issue, but Green insisted that if the Warriors wanted to trade him, he would accept it.
As he said on his Podcast, “The Draymond Green Show”: “I think it was something that we could have fought over but it wasn’t worth fighting over. You know, I think if the Warriors want to trade me at some point of the season, they want to trade me. I’ve never been a guy who wants to stay somewhere where I’m not wanted.”
Warriors Deal Would Be a Longshot
Now, it is a longshot that the Warriors would trade Green this season, though they do have three tradeable first-round picks that they could package, and Green’s contract is hefty enough that it could bring back a star-caliber player (Trey Murphy of the Pelicans comes to mind).
But, as a player, Green does not have as much value to other teams as he does to the Warriors, where he has teamed with Curry and coach Steve Kerr for 12 years. Those two know how to get the most out of Green and can still help him be an option for this group–but that would not apply to all teams. Green averaged 8.4 points last year, with 5.5 assists, and shot 32.6% from the 3-point line after shooting 32.5% the previous year.
The Warriors could trade him, and his expiring contract could get attention, but chances of finding an eager taker are slim.
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