According to Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul, who spoke to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski on Monday, Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green has decided against exercising his $27.6 million player option and will instead sign in unrestricted free agency.
Paul told ESPN, “We will keep talking to Golden State and look at all our possibilities.
Green may now speak with the Warriors, consider sign-and-trades, and pursue free agency after it was anticipated that he would use his right to withdraw.
Bringing Green back was a key goal, according to Mike Dunleavy Jr., who made the statement at his first press conference as the Warriors’ new general manager.
We genuinely want Draymond back, Dunleavy added. “We believe that we must have him because of what he signifies in terms of this team and organisation competing at the top level.
Green, a four-time All-Star who was selected with the 35th overall choice in the 2012 NBA Draught, has been a cornerstone of the Warriors’ success for the previous ten years. He anchors the defence and is often described as the team’s heart and soul.
But this past season raised some concerns about Green’s ability to lead. Green failed to completely restore his teammates’ confidence after punching Jordan Poole during training camp, which Warriors coach Steve Kerr labelled at the time the franchise’s worst crisis during his career. Kerr subsequently claimed that the incident had cast a shadow over the season.
Green acknowledged that the confrontation affected his capacity to be the outspoken, perhaps abrasive, leader who has invigorated Golden State in the past. He said he believed this inhibited the squad from operating at its peak potential. However, there is a certain consensus that everything would work out so that Green and Poole could join the squad for the next season.
This season, Green averaged 8.5 points on 52.7% shooting, 7.2 rebounds, and 6.8 assists per game.
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