Draymond Green is back on the Warriors for one more year at $27.7 million, and Golden State is paying for the version of him that still knows how to steer a defense.
That contract pushes the Warriors above the first apron and tightens the team’s financial room in a big way. The organization was never likely to choose a different route, but that doesn’t make the price tag any easier to swallow. Green is not the same two-way force he once was, and there’s no realistic way he matches that number with box-score production alone.
Last season made that plain. In 68 games, Green averaged 8.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists while shooting 41.8% from the field, his lowest mark since 2019-20.
His offense slipped so much that there were stretches when he was close to unplayable on that end. The broader picture wasn’t much kinder: his efficiency fell almost everywhere, and his role as a reliable scorer is basically gone.
That leaves Golden State with a simple demand. Green has to be a defensive anchor again.
Even now, he still brings the kind of anticipation and basketball IQ that separates good defenders from great ones. Dunks & Threes had him at a -2.6 offensive estimated plus-minus last season, but his 0.8 defensive estimated plus-minus still placed him in the same neighborhood as players like Pascal Siakam and PJ Washington. The problem is that his athleticism is no longer strong enough to let him carry the entire load by himself.
The Warriors will have Yaxel Lendeborg and Kristaps Porzingis around him, which should help. And with a deeper frontcourt and more flexibility elsewhere, there’s an argument that Green would fit better in a bench role at this stage of his career.
But that’s not the reality Golden State is working with. He has to start, and he has to make this season count.
The contract itself may already be a sunk cost, but the Warriors still need Green to avoid a complete drop-off. If he can hold his ground on defense, keep the team organized, and provide veteran leadership for Lendeborg and Santos, then he can still offer something real.
That’s the only path left for him to justify the money.
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