The Warriors spent the offseason standing still, and that alone has created the kind of conversation that usually follows a disappointing team, not a proud one. Golden State finished 37-45 last season and lost in the Play-In, then watched the summer pass without making a single external addition. They also came up empty on the stars they reportedly chased - LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Anthony Davis, and Jaylen Brown - a stretch that has reportedly left Stephen Curry growing tired and no longer completely on the same page as the front office.
That backdrop is what makes Draymond Green a name worth moving. Green came back on a one-year, $27.7 million deal, the same number as the player option he declined to give the Warriors flexibility.
Instead of using that opening to reshape the roster, Golden State wound up with the same aging group, plus rookie Yaxel Lendeborg and a handful of re-signings. Green is still a familiar pillar, but the production has dipped enough that his limitations are harder to cover when Curry is out.
In 68 games during the 2025-26 season, Green averaged 8.4 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 5.5 assists while shooting 41.8% from the field and 32.6% from three.
That’s why a deal now makes sense in this mock trade scenario. Rather than risk another middling season and lose Green for nothing when he reaches unrestricted free agency in 2027, the Warriors would flip him to Chicago for Patrick Williams, a 2028 first-round pick protected 1-20, a 2027 second-round pick, and a 2029 second-round pick that is the least favorable of the Pistons, Bucks and Knicks.
For Golden State, the appeal is straightforward: something is better than nothing. Green will always be linked to Curry and the dynasty, but at 36, he is no longer valuable enough to ignore a real return.
Williams has not developed into the player Chicago hoped for, but his $18.0 million salary through 2028-29 gives the Warriors a useful mid-sized contract, one that could be combined with picks and younger pieces in a future swing for another star. It also gives them flexibility they don’t have right now, especially with Jimmy Butler on a $56.8 million deal and only minimum salaries otherwise cluttering the books.
There’s also a longer play here. If the Warriors wait, Butler’s contract comes off the books in 2027, Green would already be gone, and Curry should have a new extension by then.
That could open the door to reshaping the roster around him instead of simply running back another older team. Anthony Davis is one obvious name to watch because the Wizards reportedly don’t want to give him the max extension he is expected to seek, and Kevin Durant could become another final option if the Rockets disappoint.
This move wouldn’t guarantee either star, but it would leave Golden State with more assets and more routes than letting Green walk away empty-handed.
Chicago, though, would have its own reasons to jump. The Bulls have already added Norman Powell and Nic Claxton, and Matas Buzelis looks ready for another jump.
Green wouldn’t be there to carry the scoring load. He’d be there to change the tone.
His defense, passing, and playoff experience could help give the Bulls the edge and structure they’ve been missing, and he’d fit the role of organizer and enforcer in a group trying to build a tougher identity.
The fit on offense wouldn’t always be clean next to Josh Giddey and Claxton, but Chicago wouldn’t be asking Green to score. They’d be asking him to make the team more disciplined and harder to play against.
And moving Williams would also clear a path away from a player who never became the Kawhi Leonard-type two-way forward the Bulls had hoped for. Green’s $27.7 million would be off the books in 2027, while Williams would otherwise still be owed $18.0 million that season and $36.0 million over the following two years, giving Chicago more room to maneuver when that offseason arrives.
In Other News...
Bulls Could Use Lakers Rumor To Start A Smart Roster Reset
The Lakers have been busy reshaping their frontcourt, and Chicago is watching with a familiar kind of interest. Los Angeles has already moved to add depth at center, first by trading for Walker Kessler and then by signing Kevon Looney, while also sorting through trade possibilities involving Dalton Knecht and Jarred Vanderbilt as it tries to keep building around its stars without running into roster and contract issues.
For the Bulls, that matters because the chatter has now tied one of their own bigs into the Lakers search for more size and flexibility. A deal talk involving Jake LaRavia and Knecht has surfaced as part of the broader discussion, which is exactly the sort of framework a rebuilding or retooling team like Chicago has to consider carefully. The fit is obvious enough, but the real question is whether the Bulls see this as a clean way to reset part of the roster or as a chance to hold out for more. [Read more 🡒]
Bulls Fans Can Dream On Paolo Banchero For One Huge Reason
Paolo Bancheros name is one that will naturally catch the attention of Bulls fans whenever the trade rumor mill starts turning, and CBS Sports Sam Quinn recently floated a scenario that would certainly qualify as a franchise-shifting swing. On The Third Apron podcast, Quinn suggested the Orlando Magic could one day be forced to think about a Banchero deal as they navigate the kind of salary-cap pressure that has already complicated things for other contenders, with Chicago mentioned as a team that would make sense as a possible partner.
For the Bulls, the appeal is easy to understand. Bancheros offensive ability and his fit with a roster looking for a true front-line centerpiece make him the sort of player who can change the tone of a rebuild in a hurry. For now, though, it remains exactly what it sounds like: speculation, not a reported negotiation, and the kind of idea that gives Chicago fans something to daydream about without any sign the Magic are actually preparing to listen. [Read more 🡒]