The tough questions the Golden State Warriors faced this season off emerged just moments after their elimination from the playoffs.
After the Dubs’ 122-101 loss in Friday’s Game 6 to the Lakers, Draymond Green told ESPN’s Andscape’s Marc Spears that his future depends, at least in part, on where general manager Bob Myers goes this summer.
Myers’ contract expires on June 30. The manager has been with the team since 2011 and the general manager since 2012. Green has a $27.6 million player option to exercise this summer.
After tweet that Green would “take his time after he conferred with Agent Rich Paul,” Spears reported. “Green also added that he is very concerned about the future of Warriors GM Bob Myers, saying that may play a role in his decision and that Myers should also do what is best for him.”
— MarcJSpears Twitter
Myers-reported chances of reaching an agreement on a new contract with owner Joe Lacob have faltered this year.
Things are looking more optimistic lately. ESPN’s Zach Lowe was confused at the idea of Myers leaving, saying on his podcast, “I still don’t quite understand — I’m not sure anyone gets it — why there’s even a question.”
The Athletic also reported that Lacob wanted to keep Myers in an article published seconds after the Warriors’ season ended.
“Lacob has publicly and privately expressed his hope of keeping Myers as the face of the Warriors’ front office and has offered him a new contract,” the article reads. “The front office staff — below and around Myers — reflect that sentiment, a collective desire to maintain the established structure.”
Of course, there’s still room for error, as the article goes on to say, “But there’s also an admission that Myers could walk out the door even if Lacob gets the required number in contract negotiations.”
Myers and Green are clearly the two most fateful decisions the Warriors face this summer. But some smaller names are also at a crossroads. Youngsters Jordan Poole and Jonathan Kuminga were obviously unhappy with their lesser roles in the playoffs. The Dubs face a massive tax bill, and Poole’s $123 million extension begins next season. “If cost cutting is required, he is considered the most likely candidate,” Shams Charania and Anthony Slater wrote of Poole, adding, “There are still concerns about transferring him.”
Kuminga appeared to qualify for the Warriors at the end of that season but was once again relegated to the doghouse in the playoffs. Charania and Slater reported that if the dubs can’t promise him a consistent role this season break, he “wants to be somewhere where he can play more.”