LOS ANGELES — Draymond Green’s indefinite suspension not only leaves Golden State without a key cog for an undetermined time period, but opens up a defining stretch for the Warriors’ future, general manager Mike Dunleavy said.
Green will be around the team for practices while also taking time away to tend to a personal matter that is connected to his recent on-court outbursts, Dunleavy said. Green has now been suspended twice this season, first for five games for putting Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert in a chokehold and, his latest, for hitting Suns center Jusuf Nurkic in the face with a flailing arm.
“The biggest thing to me right now isn’t the punishment, it’s helping him out and giving him assistance,” Dunleavy said at the Warriors’ shootaround on Thursday.
The NBA passed down an indefinite suspension with his return to play contingent on completing required work on himself, which Dunleavy said was an agreement between Green and his agent, the Warriors organization and the league.
“We understand there’s a punishment that will take place but this is also about helping somebody,” Dunleavy said. “They 100% agreed. So did Draymond.
“He’ll be back when it’s the right time, that’s something we will consider. The league, Draymond, us. Steve and I were just talking, anybody who has an amount of games or time suggested in their head right now is wrong.”
Green is in the first season of a four-year, $100 million contract signed during the offseason. Dunleavy indicated Green’s latest outburst doesn’t put in jeopardy his standing with the team long-term, but opens up a time in which the organization must seriously assess the vitality of this roster built around an aging and penetrable core. The only two highlights of this season have been Steph Curry’s elite play and a deeper bench that’s often rescued games.
“The bigger impact will be how we do the next 15-20 games and that will determine where we go more than this specific incident,” Dunleavy said. “The reality of the situation is you evaluate Draymond, his ability this year has been great. His availability is not. We need him more available. I don’t need more evaluation of him as a player, we need a little bit more evaluation of this team, the chemistry, the lineups.”
Green’s absence throws even more into flux a Warriors rotation in shambles. The traditional starting five of Curry, Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, Green and Kevon Looney has been the team’s biggest detriment through a 10-13 start. That mostly stems from Wiggins, Thompson and Looney’s diminished performances on the court and Green missing eight games already and being ejected from three.
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Jonathan Kuminga will have a clear pathway to step up and fill the frontcourt scoring void left open by Wiggins and Thompson. Kuminga has shown strides there over his last three games: He’s a plus-11 averaging 17.7 points per game in 24.7 minutes. It’s possible Kuminga sees some time in the starting lineup in Green’s place and, along with it, the deep bench that’s carried this team so far can lift the mainstays.
Dunleavy alludes to an even bigger picture: If the Warriors can’t break above .500, without Green indefinitely, the organization will be speeding toward the trade deadline with options. They have expiring contracts in Thompson and Chris Paul that can be flipped, along with future picks or perhaps some younger players, for some players that better position them for next season with Curry still the head of the snake.
In mid-December, options outside of the organization haven’t fully revealed themselves. Only the Chicago Bulls have been rumored to have wing scorer Zach LaVine on the chopping block. But as the trade market develops, these games without Green could determine the future of the franchise.
“Moving forward, we have a team that’s pretty good — the record doesn’t reflect that,” Dunleavy said. “We still have a great player in Steph Curry, who is elite, so we’re looking to get things going and turn the corner. Overall, yesterday was a long day. It’s been a long 48 hours.”
