The offseason plans for the Golden State Warriors will be largely dictated by Draymond Green's decision on his $27.7 million player option, with the veteran forward set to grant the franchise a major free agency wish according to his recent comments.
Green says he'd prefer to opt out of his option and extend, potentially giving the Warriors far more financial flexibility and crucial use of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception in free agency.
Draymond Green set to grant Warriors a major free agency wish
In a recent interview with Tim Kawakami of The San Fransisco Standard, Green dropped a major hint to his plans as he and Golden State prepare to unite on a new multi-year deal.
"I think in an ideal world, and again, this is me talking without me talking to my representation so Rich will probably kill me. But in an ideal world, I think the best path would be to decline and extend. If I had it my way, that would be the best path forward," Green said.
There's multiple reasons why opting out and extending would be best for Green, rather than just doing the franchise a favor. Signing a new deal might give him a smaller annual salary, but it would likely give him more in guaranteed money rather than test free agency the following year after a potential decline.
Perhaps more importantly, it would take him out of trade calculations until at least the middle of next season. If he were to opt in, Green could become an immediate trade candidate after already dealing with speculation over his future beyond the February deadline.
The bigger question might not be whether Green opts in or out, but rather what his next deal actually looks like and how much of a pay cut he's willing to take on next season's salary. Would he take something around two-year, $35-40 million? Would Golden State consider giving him a third season if it meant an even lower annual salary?
Draymond Green and Kristaps Porzingis to dictate Warriors free agency
Along with Green, Kristaps Porzingis is the other key player who is set to determine what else the Warriors can do in free agency. If he and Green are both willing to take less than or around $20 million in annual salary, that could give Golden State access to the non-taxpayer mid-level exception (around $15 million).
The Warriors could use that to re-sign De'Anthony Melton or break it up to sign multiple rotation-calibre players, but their biggest desire might be to utilize it on LeBron James if they can lure the superstar forward away from Los Angeles.
Whatever the end result, Green opting out of his deal and extending would be a fantastic outcome for the Warriors assuming the pay cut for next season is at least $7-8 million less than the player option.