The Golden State Warriors want to trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo. They have also expressed that they want to keep Jimmy Butler. Add it all up, and the Warriors need to find a new home for franchise legend Draymond Green -- and they need to do it quickly.
The Warriors' pursuit of Antetokounmpo is a surprise to no one. In addition to every team in the NBA loving the idea of adding a top-5 player, the Warriors in particular have long been linked to Giannis were he to ever hit the trade market. The friendship between Stephen Curry and Antetokounmpo has been documented, and the Greek superstar has ties to the Bay Area.
Antetokounmpo also makes $54.1 million this season, and as a team over the first tax apron, the Warriors cannot take back more salary than they send out. That means stacking contracts up high enough to match that lofty number. The easiest way would be to trade Jimmy Butler and his own $54.1 million salary, but the reporting since Butler's injury -- confirmed by Mike Dunleavy Jr. himself -- is that the Dubs want to keep Butler through his rehab.
Assuming for the moment that is true, there is only one other pathway to a Giannis trade: moving on from Draymond Green. That would be a titanic move for the franchise, moving on from a player who was the defensive backbone of four title teams and who has never played for another franchise. Yet there is no denying that Green's game is eroding as he ages, and his extra-curricular activities have not endeared him to Steve Kerr and others in the organization over the years.
There is one problem: the Bucks don't want Draymond. Not because they don't see his value as a player necessarily, but because they are entering a rebuild. They don't want to take back a veteran like Green with money owed next season; they want to get young players and draft picks. To pull off a trade for Giannis with Draymond involved, the Warriors need to find a third team for Green to join.
Who could trade for Draymond Green? Here are three options for the franchise to call up.
The Celtics could trade for Draymond Green
The Boston Celtics are having a surprisingly strong season even without Jayson Tatum and the plethora of rotation players who walked out the door this past summer -- including Warriors center Al Horford. The one spot they could use an upgrade is at center, and Draymond Green could be their small-ball center option as a player who fits perfectly onto a winning team.
The Celtics have a handful of their own draft picks available and the expiring salary of Anfernee Simons to send to the Bucks. If they attached a first-round pick to Simons, that would be more appealing to the Bucks and add to the Warriors' overall haul of draft capital. It's a deal that could make sense for all three teams involved.
If anyone in the entire league was prepared to handle Draymond Green, it's Boston coach Joe Mazzulla.
The Pistons could trade for Draymond Green
Green is a proud Michigan native, growing up in Saginaw and attending Michigan State University. Because of that, a return home to the Detroit Pistons has been whispered for years. With the Pistons rising to the top of the Eastern Conference this season, now could be the right time for a homecoming.
The Pistons are the second-best defensive team in the league and could lean even more into that identity, infusing a relatively young team with a veteran who has been to the Finals before. The career-long Pistons have never won a playoff series, and Tobias Harris and Duncan Robinson aren't necessarily leaning into the champion narrative. Draymond? He could be the culture-setting veteran who knows what it takes to go all the way.
Tobias Harris is on an expiring contract and could be swapped for Green alongside a pick, or the Pistons could build a package around Jaden Ivey and Caris LeVert instead.
The Lakers could trade for Draymond Green
The Pistons would be leaning into a defensive identity; the Los Angeles Lakers desperately need to find a defensive identity, of any kind. They have the league's 25th-ranked defense, inexplicably preventing a team with Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and LeBron James from being a real playoff threat.
Draymond Green would change that instantly. He could be their playoff center ahead of Deandre Ayton and set the tone for the Lakers. He and LeBron James are close, and if anyone was going to ensure LeBron gives his all on defense at 41 years old, it will be Green.
The Lakers could build an intriguing package starting with Rui Hachimura's expiring contract and Dalton Knecht as a prospect along with a first-round swap.
Whether one of these teams or another option emerges to take on Draymond Green, it would be shocking for the Warriors to pull off a Giannis Antetokounmpo trade involving Green and not route him to another team. To do what they are attempting to do, it means sending the four-time champion to a new home.