On their path to winning the NBA title last season, the Golden State Warriors garnered headlines for their enormous salary cap. The Warriors were the highest-paying club in the league in 2021-22, with four players earning in excess of $20 million per season.
Draymond Green received nearly $25 million of that, and he can opt out of his contract in 2023 if he wants to. Thought to be the beating heart of the Warriors’ current incarnation, Green may be considering other options in the near future.
Slater and Thompson of the Athletic stated that Green is seeking a four-year deal worth $164.2 million over the next five seasons. This year, he’s expected to earn $25.8 million.
According to The Athletic, however, the Warriors do not plan on pursuing Green at that price tag. A source tells Sports Illustrated that “the Warriors’ current inclination is to negotiate extension with Green in the summer of 2017.”
Draymond Green contract details
Green signed a four-year, $100 million contract with the Warriors ahead of the 2019 season, which was actually a team-friendly deal at the time.
That extension broke down as follows:
Year | Salary |
2020-21 | $22.2 million |
2021-22 | $24 million |
2022-23 | $25.8 million |
2023-24 | $27.6 million* |
*Has opt-out option
A new contract would, of course, be significantly more expensive for the Warriors. But if Green forces their hand and publicly announces he’s going to opt out next season, it could force their hand to either commit to or move on from Green midseason, despite them likely wanting to negotiate next summer.
Warriors’ highest-paid players in 2022
The Warriors have another expensive year ahead of them in 2022, with Green still on the books alongside Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Andrew Wiggins.
Here’s a look at them and what they’ll be making this season.
Player | Salary |
Stephen Curry | $48 million |
Klay Thompson | $40.6 million |
Andrew Wiggins | $33.6 million |
Draymond Green | $25.8 million |
The Warriors’ current structure, of course, is hardly tenable. While the Warriors can, in theory, sign all of their contributors to max deals, the luxury tax would come knocking for Joe Lacob. And even the highest spenders have a ceiling. Thompson is already on the max, and the Warriors have to reckon with that.
How to quantify Draymond Green
Another issue for the Warriors is the inability to accurately assess Green’s contribution to the club.
Green is the heart and soul of the Warriors, but he hasn’t averaged more than 10 points since 2017 and he’s frequently nearly invisible in the box score. In addition to that, he’s one of the franchise’s public faces. However, he excels as a defender and a leader on the court for the Golden State Warriors.
However, despite the fact that other teams are aware of this, it’s unlikely that he’ll be offered a deal worth the maximum value. For the Warriors’ team, Green is a wonderful complement; clubs offering new max contracts are seeking for building bricks. Even if he chooses to leave for leverage, Green may not receive the compensation he desires after the upcoming season.