Getty Image / Harry How
Earlier this week, Draymond Green made a big decision on his future.
He turned down his player option with the Golden State Warriors for the 2023-24 NBA season.
That player option was worth around $27.6 million for next season, which has led to speculation about what Draymond is looking for in his next contract as he hits free agency.
There were times over the course of this past season where it was rumored that Draymond wanted a max contract.
While it’s not clear if that is actually what he is looking for from whoever he ends up signing with, but it does seem that he plans on getting paid quite a big.
Yesterday, Stephen A Smith said that he believed Draymond is easily worth $100 million for his next contract.
Today, Draymond shared that comment on his Instagram story and added, “With an emphasis on easily.”
Draymond Green's latest IG story 👀
Green recently opted out of the final year of his contract with the Warriors. Do you think he's worth $100 million? pic.twitter.com/kjh64INmJt
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) June 23, 2023
It was safe to assume that Draymond was looking for more than that player option could offer, so if he’s looking for $100 million, then it’s probably over 3 years.
That means that he could be looking for something in the $35 million per year range.
That could be an issue for the Golden State Warriors. They already have about $150 million invested in Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, and Chris Paul for next season.
There’s also the question of what Draymond’s value actually is on the open market.
Draymond Green is a strong player that defends well and does a good job of moving the ball. However, he isn’t really a scoring option. That limited the Warriors during the playoffs and caps his upside to some extent.
We’ll get the chance to see how the league values Draymond this offseason, but at that price, it wouldn’t be shocking if he ended up having to look at a team other than the Golden State Warriors for his next deal.