Warriors: 3 dream Draymond Green replacements and 1 to avoid at all cost
By Josh Wilson
With Draymond Green quite possibly moving onto a new team this summer, the Golden State Warriors need to think about replacements.
Draymond Green might be playing somewhere other than Golden State for the first time in his NBA career next season. The hard-nosed defender who proved the Warriors‘ scouting right and had his hand in multiple NBA titles plans to opt out of the final year of his contract with the Warriors and enter free agency.
Now, that doesn’t mean he won’t end up with Golden State. His agent, Rich Paul, confirmed on Monday that they aren’t closing the door on re-engaging with the Warriors for Green’s next deal. But given the financial constraints the Warriors have, it’s hard to see how an extension would work, with Green opting out to presumably earn himself his big final deal of his career.
It’s also hard to see exactly how the Warriors go about replacing him. They are tens of millions of dollars above the salary cap no matter how you slice it. With new management in tow in Mike Dunleavy Jr. and Bob Myers out, one would make the assumption that working toward a cleaner slate of cap space is the preference for both the GM and ownership, especially with the Warriors surely closer to the end of dynasty competition than the start.
Dream Draymond Green replacements: Jerami Grant, Trail Blazers
Somewhat quietly, Jerami Grant might be one of the better free agents available this offseason. He improved his scoring to 20.5 points per game this year while also adding 4.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. He quietly had one of the best seasons of his career.
Unfortunately, Grant’s defense, which was once his primary calling card, has taken a slight hit. He fell to -1.4 in DBPM last season after hovering around an even 0 for years.
If he can provide serviceable defense with solid scoring, though, that could be enough.
This one is a dream because the Warriors have a tight budget that almost certainly can’t fit Grant. Secondly, he has an extension on the table from the Trail Blazers that looks pretty nice, so I’d expect to see him back in Portland, not necessarily fielding offers elsewhere.