The Golden State Warriors ended up winning the 2022 NBA Championship after struggling for two consecutive seasons. For the next few weeks, the Dubs celebrated non-stop, but since then, the franchise has been facing a new issue almost every day.
Initially, they were forced to let go of Gary Payton II and Otto Porter Jr. in order to avoid paying a lot of luxury tax. The Warriors have another tough decision to make, which is to hand a max offer to either Andrew Wiggins or Jordan Poole.
With the 2022 NBA champions worrying about that, they are now burdened with another problem. Draymond Green wants a max contract. Green is part of the original trio for the team featuring him, Stephen Curry, and Klay Thompson.
Green might not have huge numbers, but he is a defensive beast and is one of the biggest voices in the locker room. But recent reports suggest that the Dubs are in no mood to give Green a max extension. NBA insiders Anthony Slater and Marcus Thompson II discussed the same in their recent piece for The Athletic.
Via The Athletic:
All indications, though, are that the Warriors have no plans to offer Green a maximum extension, and there isn’t any current traction on any type of extension. The typical pattern of this Golden State front office is to extend with one year remaining. Even Stephen Curry waited until one year remained before signing his max extension last offseason. Green has two years remaining on the maximum extension he signed in 2019. While he could opt out a year earlier, the Warriors’ current preference is to talk extension with Green next summer.
The question becomes how does Green respond. No one wants an unhappy Green in the locker room. He is the team’s biggest voice. His presence is felt unlike any other player — when he’s fired up, when he’s angry, when he’s frustrated, when he’s contrite. How would he handle being told no extension after his stellar defense anchored an improbable run to another championship?
Does he demand a trade? Does he, again, take less money than he wants? Does he go public with intentions to opt out and leave the Warriors in free agency? Does he pour less into the young players and, essentially, stop grooming his replacements?
This is a huge problem for the defending champions. Because Green still has two years left on his contract with a player option for the 2023-24 NBA season. Green is eligible for a contract extension on August 03, 2022.
If the Warriors do not hand him the max extension, it could have two conclusions. Either Green plays incredibly well and proves his with once again to the team with an amazing 2022-23 NBA season.
On the other hand, Green could become incredibly upset and destroy the amazing chemistry that the Warriors have spent so many years creating. Considering Green’s vocal nature, the second option seems more likely.
