Warriors GM Mike Dunleavy Insists Draymond Green Was Never on the Trade Block
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LOS ANGELES — Golden State Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy said Saturday that forward Draymond Green was never seriously offered in trade discussions before this week’s NBA deadline, even as the club explored a blockbuster with the Milwaukee Bucks for Giannis Antetokounmpo.
“His name was not in conversations other than the ones where teams called me to ask about him,” Dunleavy told reporters. “It was never a possibility of him not being here or remotely close. I’ve conveyed that to him.”
To satisfy salary-matching rules in a potential Antetokounmpo deal, Golden State would have needed to include either Green or Jimmy Butler III. Asked if Butler, rather than Green, would have been available, Dunleavy replied, “We’re not doing that. I’m not going down the roster talking about who is in trades and who is not.”
Green addressed the situation on his podcast Saturday morning, recounting a phone call with Dunleavy a few days before the deadline. According to Green, the GM explained the talks with Milwaukee and noted that either he or Butler would have been part of any agreement. “He didn’t rule it out,” Green said. “So I took that as, ‘All right, that’ll probably be me.’”
The Bucks ultimately showed little interest in the draft-pick package Golden State offered, and discussions stalled. The Warriors then pivoted to Atlanta, landing 7-foot-3 center Kristaps Porzingis in exchange for Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield.
Porzingis brings floor spacing and rim protection the Warriors have lacked, but his availability remains a concern. Limited to 17 games this season by Achilles tendinitis and the lingering effects of postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), he met the team in Los Angeles on Friday night and held a court workout Saturday.
After consulting with director of sports medicine and performance Rick Celebrini, the Warriors decided Porzingis will sit out the final three games before the All-Star break, stay in San Francisco for conditioning, and target his debut immediately after the hiatus.
Golden State’s first game following the break is Feb. 19 at Boston, Porzingis’ former team. “Forty-eight straight minutes,” he joked about his goal for that night. “We’ll see what the medical staff has for me. I want to hit the ground running.”
Porzingis averaged 17.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and shot 36 percent from three-point range in his 17 appearances with the Hawks this season.
Source: ESPN
