Draymond Green might be at the center of the next big free agent saga in the NBA as the longtime Golden State Warriors veteran is flirting with the possibility of leaving the Warriors for the first time in his career. The team has to figure out how to extend Jordan Poole, Andrew Wiggins, and Draymond to equitable contracts, something that’ll be a massive challenge with the luxury tax penalties headed GSW’s way.
There’s been a lot of speculation as to where Draymond could possibly go. While his hometown Detroit Pistons and the Los Angeles Lakers with close friend LeBron James are obvious options, it seems Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks also have a shot at landing Green, according to Sean Deveney of Heavy.com.
“If he gets a big offer from Detroit as one example or maybe Dallas or the Lakers, somewhere he would like to play? He is not going to be shy about leaving. He understands this business.”
“He has always thought about playing for Detroit, helping his hometown of Flint at the same time. He would love to play with a superstar like Luka where he has to just play off him. And he is Klutch. you know he loves being on the barbershop show with LeBron. He wants to have an entertainment career when he is done playing. You don’t need to be in L.A. for that, but it helps.” (h/t Heavy)
Could Dallas Be A Realistic Landing Spot For Draymond?
The Mavericks haven’t been successful in adding a secondary star next to Luka Doncic since he was drafted by the team. Kristaps Porzingis didn’t work out and the Mavs have decided to surround Luka with complementary players instead of a big name secondary star to play alongside.
Draymond could be the perfect defensive anchor in a Jason Kidd system to hold down Dalllas’ poor defensive habits, especially amongst big men. However, he won’t be as complementary as many would expect due to his lack of scoring. Unlike Stephen Curry, Luka is at his best while playmaking, so taking the ball out of Luka’s hands for Draymond to create shots might not be something the team looks to do.
The Mavericks’ cap space is murky and they definitely won’t have room for a max contract next offseason. With the recent extension to Maxi Kleber and players like Luka, Tim Hardaway Jr., Spencer Dinwiddie, and Dorian Finney-Smith all on long-term contracts, the space won’t be opening up in time for the Mavs to have enough space to offer Draymond a contract he would want.
