In the aftermath of his latest scandal, Draymond Green is doing everything in his power to put the past behind him and help his team repeat as champions this season.
For any other team, the whole ordeal might have been too much to handle. A punch in the face is nothing to joke about, after all, and teams have been broken up over less.
But after spending some short time away from the squad, Green made his on-court return this Friday, lacing up for a preseason game against the Denver Nuggets. In his first game back, many fans were expecting things to be awkward at the start. Some even though the Warriors might struggle to play together for a while.
But after watching the team play for themselves, fans are convinced that they look better than ever.
This may go down as the most special Warriors team to date.
Wow. Just wow.
— dre (@OnBallSteph) October 15, 2022
Kuminga looks like he is quickly becoming the most interesting version of himself given his skillset.
Warriors ability to take almost any type of player and mold them into their culture and style is one of the most impressive things about them.
— Adam Mares (@Adam_Mares) October 15, 2022
https://twitter.com/SCDG2330/status/1581121481643155456
Yes this looks like Warriors basketball! Rest of the league should be terrified!
— Natalie Esquire (@natfluential) October 15, 2022
Y’all thought Draymond punching Poole was gonna affect the Warriors’ chemistry?? 😂😂😂😂
— jose ☔️ (@KlayForTrey) October 15, 2022
The Warriors could realistically have all of the following this year:
-Best Player
-Best Defender
-Best Bench Player
-2 Additional fringe All-Star caliber players
-Best Bench
-Best Coach
-Best Perimeter Shooting
-Best Defense
-Deepest/Most Versatile Roster
— Justin (RIPKOBE) (@ThePackageJG) October 15, 2022
unless there’s an all out brawl at practice this year, the warriors are winning it all again
— Chris Montano (@gswchris) October 15, 2022
Steph shaking shoes, Draymond throwing screens like Mike Alstott, Kuminga on a trampoline, ball not touching the floor during the PnR. same ol’ Warriors.https://t.co/pU9Em4uMTC pic.twitter.com/mdGRYvoZCR
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) October 15, 2022
Draymond can literally knock out a teammate and Warriors still will have more chemistry than them Lakers
— keepit💯 (@noflexin954) October 15, 2022
https://twitter.com/JohnEhrenfeld/status/1581124396944883712
Considering the talent level we’ve seen from the Warriors over the past few years, it’s pretty surreal to see fans so blown away by their performance in the pre-season. Still, it’s impressive that the Warriors are looking so good, especially after enduring so much turmoil.
Regarding Draymond, he is likely going to be staying in Golden State, but his future with the team has never been more under doubt in the aftermath of his big mistake.
Draymond Green’s Place With The Warriors Remains Questionable Amid Upcoming Contract Decisions
The Warriors may be looking good out there on the court, but the future is still mired in uncertainty. Specifically, the status of Draymond Green has to be called into question.
“Here’s the thing. I think they’ve been through this rodeo with him a bunch of times and I think they were trying to figure out how to manage it and hope it never got too bad and hope it never blew up,” said Bill Simmons. “I was of the opinion that it was 50-50. No real insight info on this, but I think they wanna pay Wiggins. I think they wanna pay Poole. At some point, not everyone can make $35 million a year on your team, right? And at some point you gotta take some chances. You have Wiseman, you have Kuminga, and you know you can patch together some big guys. I thought it was 50-50. Now, I think it’s like 25-75 because I think they have outs now to get rid of him.”
Only time will tell how the Warriors decide to deal with Draymond, but they have a lot to consider with his contract set to expire at the end of the season.
After all, he has put the team through, would bringing him back on a pay raise really be the wise decision for Golden State? Some would say no for obvious reasons, but the Warriors don’t see it so simply.
