Draymond Green #23 of the Golden State Warriors

It’s been a good career with the Golden State Warriors for Draymond Green who might not have lasted in the NBA if not for the team’s foresight in recognizing the unique challenge the ultra-strong Green could put in front of opponents. Had Green been drafted by any number of a wide swath of teams in the NBA, instead of landing with the Warriors in the second round, he might well have fizzled out as a player well ahead of his time.

But Green did wind up with the Warriors, and helped lead Golden State’s small-ball revolution of a decade ago. The problem is, that era of the league has passed–the style of play Green’s Warriors pioneered has given way to a similar style only with players bigger than Green.

Teams now can develop strong, versatile and athletic big men in the mold of Green, but these days, many of them are 7-footers. Thank you for the Death Lineup, Mr. Green, but the services of 6-foot-6 centers are not much required anymore. Especially, it seems, by the Warriors.

Draymond Green Owed $27.5 Million for Next Season

And so we are probably not going to see Green around with the Warriors very much in the coming years. Green’s contract can run up this summer and he can opt to be a free agent, but the $27.5 million for next season is not going to be available on the market for Green. Thus he should pick up that 2026-27 option, and is widely expected to.

But Green wants to play beyond that, and things could get sketchy for Golden State from there. The Warriors are willing to hold Green for 2026-27, but beyond that, things get dicey.

Golden State wants a more traditional center on the roster. That’s not Green. It’s possible that Green will seek an extension–probably two years, and something like $35-40 million– to shore up his future in the league, but there’s not much evidence that the Warriors want to pay that much to keep him.

Here’s how one Western Conference executive put it: “He could stay on a small deal, a $6 million deal, something like that. As a player, his game never relied on health or springy steps or all that, so you can live with him not being 100%.  He can still so some things. But you can’t live with him shooting  from the 3-point line, you can’t live with him being less and less useful on defense and you can’t live without his contract getting cut in half, more.”

Warriors Center Sticking for 4 More Years?

Green is averaging 8.6 points, 5. 7 rebounds and 5.2 assists, solid role-player numbers. He is shooting 41.7% from the field and 32.7% from the 3-point line. He’s been able to cultivate a leadership role with his fellow Warriors players, which is as it should be for a player who has been to five NBA Finals.

But Green is a unique case, a past-his-prime scorer and defender who also happens to be a franchise icon. Green wants to continue playing, well into the future. If he can’t do that with the Warriors, he will have to up and leave in free agency. Increasingly, that how Green’s future is shaping up.

Green does not seem set on retirement. He chatted with NBA insider Mark Medina and offered a definitive statement on his future.

“I feel great. I feel like I can go another two to four years. I think for me, I always want to try to compete at an elite level,” Green said. “If I can’t do that, then it’s not as fun. But what I will say is that I have more left than I thought I would at this point.

“So as the years have gone by, the outlook on when I’ll be done has changed. I thought I’d get to Year 12 and that I’d be breaking down. But by the time I got to Year 12, I felt like I was still getting better.”

Sean Deveney is a veteran sports reporter covering the NBA, NFL and MLB for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2019 and has more than two decades of experience covering the NBA, including 17 years as the lead NBA reporter for the Sporting News. Deveney is the author of 7 nonfiction books, including “Fun City,” “Before Wrigley became Wrigley,” and “Facing Michael Jordan.” More about Sean Deveney