The Warriors free agency rumors started before the body was cold
The tough questions facing the Golden State Warriors this offseason popped up just moments after they were eliminated from the playoffs.
After the Dubs’ 122-101 Game 6 loss to the Lakers on Friday, Draymond Green told Marc Spears of ESPN’s Andscape that his future, at least in part, depends on where general manager Bob Myers goes this summer.
Myers’ contract expires on June 30. The executive has been with the team since 2011, and the general manager since 2012. Green has a player option worth $27.6 million that he can exercise this summer.
After tweeting out that Green would “take his time deciding after deliberating with agent Rich Paul," Spears reported, “Green also added that he is very concerned about the future of Warriors GM Bob Myers, said it can play a role in his decision and that Myers should do what’s best for him.”
Myers' reported chances of reaching an agreement on a new contract with owner Joe Lacob have fluctuated this year.
Lately, things look more optimistic. ESPN’s Zach Lowe was befuddled at the notion of Myers leaving, saying on his podcast, “I still don’t quite understand — I’m not sure anybody does — why there’s even a question there.”
The Athletic, in a piece published seconds after the Warriors’ season came to an end, also reported that Lacob wants to keep Myers.
“Lacob has stated publicly and privately his hope to retain Myers as the face of the Warriors’ front office and has offered him a new deal,” the piece reads. “Those within the front office – under and around Myers – echo that sentiment, a collective desire to keep the established structure in place.”
Of course, there’s still some room for error, as the piece goes on to say, “But there’s also an acknowledgement that Myers may walk out the door, even if Lacob does reach the necessary number in contract negotiations.”
Myers and Green are clearly by far the two most fateful decisions the Warriors will face this summer. But some smaller names are at a crossroads, too. Youngsters Jordan Poole and Jonathan Kuminga were clearly unhappy with their lessened roles in the playoffs. The Dubs have a mammoth tax bill looming, and Poole's $123 million extension kicks in next season. "If cost-cutting is required, he profiles as the likeliest candidate," Shams Charania and Anthony Slater wrote of Poole, adding that: "There’s still hesitancy to move him."
Kuminga appeared to be emerging for the Warriors at the end of this season only to get banished to the doghouse again in the playoffs. Charania and Slater reported that he "will want to be somewhere he can play more" if the Dubs can't promise him a consistent role this offseason.
Source: SFGATE
