Draymond Green Re-Signs with Warriors: Latest Details, Comments and Reaction

Despite a more-contentious-than-expected negotiation process, Draymond Green is staying with the Golden State Warriors. The forward and Golden State agreed to a five-year contract Wednesday to take one of the biggest free-agent dominoes off the board. 

Green announced the agreement via Bleacher Report's Uninterrupted:

Paul Sancya/Associated Press

The Warriors posted a photo of Green signing his contract on July 9:

Ben Margot/Associated Press

Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports noted the deal is worth $85 million. However, Tim Kawakami of the Mercury News quoted the deal at $82 million.

Green took to Instagram to show his mother's emotional reaction to the new deal:

While he was widely expected to stay, reports indicated Green and the Warriors were at an impasse as free agency began. ESPN.com's Ramona Shelburne reported the two sides had "broken off" talks earlier in the day. Green was said to be surprised by a robust market that saw more than $1 billion spent since free agency kicked off at 12:01 a.m. ET. 

Golden State's next move may involve dumping salary to lessen its tax bill. David Lee, who lost his starting job to Green during the regular season, is the most obvious candidate. 

Lee and the Warriors have a handshake agreement where the team will attempt to dump the $15.49 million remaining on his contract. Grantland's Zach Lowe reported the Warriors attempted to package the No. 30 pick with Lee but were unsuccessful. 

Golden State is already paying the four-year maximum for guard Klay Thompson and has to plan for Stephen Curry's impending free agency in 2017. Curry will likely command a $30-plus million salary as the new television deal kicks in, raising the cap. 

Paying Thompson and Green along with Finals MVP Andre Iguodala leaves the Warriors with five players making eight figures.  While the club is far from nearing bankruptcy after winning a title, ownership is probably looking at a sizable tax bill next year regardless of the Lee decision. 

Green, 25, averaged 11.7 points, 8.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game last season, numbers that undersell his two-way effect. He bounced back and forth between both forward positions and even center in some small-ball lineups, holding his own against all three en route to finishing second in the Defensive Player of the Year vote. The former second-round pick also continued his development on the offensive end, knocking down 1.4 threes per game.

“It’s hard to put into words what Draymond means to the team,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr told Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. “He does everything; he’s a jack of all trades. On top of that, he’s one of our leaders and the guy who talks the most trash to the other team, to the refs, to his teammates, to me. He’s kind of our life line."

Lowe also offered his support of the deal, "Draymond was never going anywhere, and he absolutely earned this deal. Can count on one hand the [number of guys who do what he does on defense."

The trash talk gave the Warriors a sense of toughness that helped build their league-best defense. Green and Andrew Bogut were often tasked with enforcing in the middle, and their stability inside helped Golden State build one of the best two-way regular-season teams in NBA history.

That continued in the Finals, when Kerr substituted Iguodala for Bogut in the starting lineup and put Green at center for much of Game 4. Green impressed despite being at a massive size disadvantage, which helped turn the series in Golden State's favor. His triple-double in the series-clinching Game 6 was the first in Warriors franchise history.

Whether Green would have had as much value in another city is another question. He still can't create shots for himself, shoots a below-average mark from three and thrives as a Warrior because they don't ask him to go outside his comfort zone. Now that Green is being paid like an elite talent, he'll go from being a happy surprise to being expected to produce on a star level every night.

It remains to be seen how Green's uptick in salary willl changes his career narrative. Given the way he's bucked expectations thus far, odds are he'll be just fine.  

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