Draymond Green Is the Odd Man Out of Steve Kerr’s Shared Farewell

Steve Kerr told Logan Murdock of The Ringer that he expects to coach out his new two-year deal, and that he can picture “this ending where Steph, Dray, we all leave around the same time.” The contracts matter more here than the sentiment.

Two of the three timelines already line up. The third, Green’s, is set up to break off first.

Kerr and Curry Are Already in Sync

Kerr signed his extension in May, and his own comments put his likely last season in 2027-28. Curry’s deal ends at nearly the same point: his two-year, $116 million extension runs through 2027-28 with a player option for 2028-29. If he plays that option out, it takes Curry through his 20th season in the NBA and age 41.

The player option is the piece that ties them together. If Kerr leaves after 2027-28, Curry can decline the option the same summer, and nobody has to call it a retirement until he’s ready to.

The franchise has also already shown it will let Curry shape these terms. He was eligible for an extension worth up to $136.7 million over two years and signed for $116 million, taking roughly $20 million less to finish his career in the Bay.

Kerr’s other comments in the interview point the same way. “Do we throw away our entire future to build around a 39-year-old Steph?” he asked, before answering himself: “Hell no.” A franchise going all-in for one last run wouldn’t talk like that.

Green’s Contract Points the Other Way

Green is on a different calendar. After opting out to chase LeBron James, he came back on a one-year, $27.7 million deal that runs only through the 2026-27 season.

His expiring salary is also a big part of how Golden State plans to rebuild. Green’s $27.7 million and Jimmy Butler III’s much larger number both come off the Warriors’ books next summer, and that is the room the front office has been protecting.

If it wants to spend that room on a major addition, re-signing a 37-year-old Green at anything close to his current salary works against it.

Green’s play doesn’t give him much leverage either. Last season he averaged 8.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists across 68 appearances. That’s still useful from a defensive organizer, but it’s a long way from production you can’t replace.

Green also has an obvious alternative career. He already runs a podcast and has been on Inside the NBA, so leaving the floor wouldn’t leave him without a next step.

Two Will Probably Go Together

The best case for all three leaving together depends on Green. He’d have to take a cheap deal in summer 2027 to stay for one more season with Kerr and Curry, and he has a history of taking team-friendly paths.

He opted out in June specifically to give the Warriors room to chase James. He’s also called the franchise “more of a family to me than anything.”

That’s a real possibility, but nothing in Green’s contract makes it happen. Kerr’s and Curry’s deals end at the same point. Green’s ends a year earlier, in the same summer the Warriors have set up to reshape the roster.

SES’s call is that Kerr and Curry finish together after 2027-28, and that Green has to win a new negotiation next summer to join them. “Around the same time” leaves Kerr enough room to call that a shared ending if Green leaves one year early.

What would change the call is a multiyear deal for Green next summer at a salary that leaves real cap room, which would show the front office wants all three to leave together. Another possibility runs the other direction: if this season goes badly, Kerr could leave after 2026-27 despite what he told Murdock. Then Green would be on Kerr’s timeline, and Curry would be the one left over.

Source: Logan Murdock of The Ringer

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