There's a legitimate chance the Golden State Warriors use Draymond Green's expiring contract in a trade before February's mid-season deadline, but LeBron James' exit from the Los Angeles Lakers all but rules out the pacific rival as a plausible destination.
There has been murmurs of Green joining the Lakers in the past, but that was at a time where James was the superstar at the franchise and where he might have held some influence over bringing his good friend to Los Angeles.
LeBron James exit all but rules Lakers out from Draymond Green trade
With Marcus Thompson of The Athletic once again raising Green's name as a potential mid-season trade candidate, Svyatoslav Rovenchuk of Lake Show Life has quickly floated the Purple and Gold as a possible landing spot for the veteran forward.
"Green is the type of vocal leader that organizes any defense he is a part of. The four-time NBA champion has captained several elite units during his time with the Warriors. Slotting in at the four for the Lakers, the combination of Draymond and Walker Kessler could give the team an excellent chance to be extremely functional and productive on that end," Rovenchuk wrote.
As much as a Green-Kessler frontcourt combination has the chance to be elite on the defensive side of the ball, there may be too many spacing concerns for head coach JJ Redick as he builds a rotation around Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.
Perhaps there's also a world in which the Warriors give Green an opportunity to have a say in his next destination, and it's unlikely that he views the Lakers as his ideal spot now that James has departed for the Philadelphia 76ers.
Lakers also wouldn't have anything to offer Warriors
There's also the factor of what the Lakers would actually offer up to the Warriors in a deal which, going by Rovenchuk's insights, isn't much at all. A combination of Jarred Vanderbilt, Jaden Hardy and Jake LaRavia doesn't do anything for Golden State in the short or long-term.
At the same time, that's also reflective of the fact that Green within himself will have very little value even as an expiring contract. The Warriors will need to attach assets to their former Defensive Player of the Year to land a legitimate upgrade, otherwise what's the point of simply moving on when they could just let him walk in free agency anyway?
As much as Green could be in the final months of his time at the Warriors, he's still a franchise legend and the front office will be hesitant to move him for little in return, let alone in a package from the Lakers.
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