Draymond Green came closer to leaving Golden State than most fans realized.
The Warriors forward said he was ready to head to Memphis in the summer of 2023 and asked Golden State to help make a sign-and-trade happen. Instead, the Warriors pushed the talks with the Grizzlies far enough that the deal fell apart, and Green stayed put.
“In negotiations, you wanna have another team, you have to sometimes make it real to the team that, ‘Hey, you got something else.’ I called the Warriors and said, ‘Yo, I’m gonna go to the Grizzlies, can y’all do all y’all can do to work that sign-and-trade and make it work for me?’
and, to the Warriors’ credit, they then went into negotiations with the Grizzlies,” said Green. “I will say, they moved the goalposts on the Grizzlies a bit, but once they moved the goalposts, it was also clear to me, like, ‘They really want me here,’ and at that rate it’s like ‘Let’s go, let’s get this done.”
That near-exit is now part of a bigger offseason picture for Golden State, a team that went 37-45 last season and came up empty while chasing outside help. The Warriors did not want to run it back, but keeping their core intact has mattered more than landing a splashy addition.
Green, now in his 14th year, has spent his entire career in San Francisco and has won four championships there. His numbers - 8.7 points, 6.8 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game on 44.7% shooting - only tell part of the story. He has been the defensive anchor for the Warriors, a role that doesn’t always show up cleanly in the box score.
His place with the franchise has been under strain before, and this summer brought another round of uncertainty. Golden State was viewed as a non-contender in the West, and Green’s return was far from a sure thing. Memphis, meanwhile, was willing to pay more at the time as it chased playoff hopes, giving Green a real alternative before the Warriors stepped in.
The outcome ended up keeping Green in Golden State on a one-year, $27.7 million deal this summer. He is on an expiring contract now, so the long-term picture still isn’t settled, but the message from the Warriors was clear: they were not eager to let him walk.
With Stephen Curry now 38, Golden State can’t keep bleeding important rotation pieces and expect the same level of stability. For now, though, the franchise has made its position known by paying one of its most accomplished players, and that could still leave room for one more run.
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Grizzlies Face One Defining Question Entering This Rebuild Year
Memphis is heading into the 2026-27 season with a little more optimism than a year ago, and for good reason. The Grizzlies are expected to be better, with a real chance to get back into the playoff conversation if health cooperates and the group finds the right chemistry early. After a season that left plenty of room for growth, this feels like the kind of year where the baseline expectation is not just progress, but a meaningful step toward contention.
One of the biggest reasons for that buzz is Cameron Boozer, who arrived as the No. 3 overall pick in the 2026 NBA draft and comes in with early Rookie of the Year attention. His presence gives Memphis another layer to build around, but the larger question is how quickly all of the pieces fit together around him. If the Grizzlies can stay on the floor and settle into a workable rotation, the ceiling looks a lot higher than a typical rebuild season. [Read more 🡒]