Steve Kerr offers a bleak assessment of Warriors future without Draymond

After falling short of their goal to repeat as champions, the Golden State Warriors may look very different next season. That could begin with longtime Warriors star Draymond Green, who can opt out of his contract this summer. While there were reports that the Warriors could re-sign Green in free agency, they opted not to extend his contract earlier in the season when they did so for Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins.

After the preseason incident in which he punched Poole, perhaps Golden State was sending a message to Green, wanting to see how he would respond. Green isn’t the same player he once was, but he proved instrumental in helping the Warriors make the semifinals as a sixth seed.

Now, Golden State will have to decide whether to bring green back or move on. If coach Steve Kerr has any say in the contract negotiations, he will be back next season.

Kerr’s comments could result in Draymond Green returning to the Warriors next season.

Kerr coming out as strong as he did might increase the chances that Green is able to finish out his career with Golden State. However, keeping him will prove costly to the Warriors, who are already the most expensive team in NBA history and are subject to the repeater tax.

Basically, keeping Green could cost triple his annual salary in tax payments. That is on top of the new CBA, which will make it virtually impossible for big-spending teams like the Warriors to improve.

Even then, letting a member of their big three go seems like a no-go. Perhaps Golden State would be the same, talent-wise, next season without Green. Then again, he gives the team a much-needed edge and appears to push his teammates to play as hard as he does.

That, alone, may not make him worth another big multi-year deal. Still, Kerr believes that the Warriors wouldn’t have a chance to win another championship without Green, and that should tell us everything we need to know about his importance to their team.