It’s time for Warriors to move on from Draymond Green

For once, no one’s coming to Green’s defense claiming unfair coverage or asking for another angle of the play — as Green has officially crossed the line from providing a perceived soft and jump-shooting Warriors squad with toughness that’s now widely acknowledged as a reckless mess. And when you consider his child-like tantrums along with the sharp regression of Klay Thompson, the Warriors will be forced to brainstorm their future. 

Who should be involved going forward? The Warriors already sent Jordan Poole packing to the Washington Wizards following an incident last year where Green practically knocked his tooth out at practice for saying “You’re just an expensive backpack for 30 (Stephen Curry).” There was suddenly a choice of whether they’d buy into the future or if they would hang on to their core that hoisted four prior championships.

They, in our opinion, foolishly stood behind a player who has nothing to offer the Warriors going forward except podcasts. It’s time for the Warriors to move on from their core and at the very least begin thinking about what comes next.

Entering Wednesday night, the Warriors were 11th in the Western Conference, and we can assume without Green for the next few weeks, as there’s been speculation his suspension could hover around the 25-game mark. A team that’s 2-6 without Green wasn’t winning games with him, either.

He’s essentially a high-paid distraction that is no longer part of a winning equation. Normally the Warriors’ best player, Curry, puts on a masterclass on how to deal with Green, but last night was different. Watch this:

We can’t speculate what’s going through Curry’s head other than frustration he was a one-man show during their 119-116 loss in Phoenix, however, perhaps it’s time for us to question where his head should be. Steph has control over the direction this team goes into the deadline and we believe that Green needs to be thrown overboard.

Doesn’t mean he’s a bad person or he doesn’t possess the skills to contribute to a winner — Green simply isn’t focused enough on making the necessary sacrifices his teammates need from him, mentally. 

Of course, arguments can be made (strong ones) that Draymond blew their chances by getting suspended during the 2016 NBA Finals by kicking his legs over LeBron James at the tail end of a Game 5 loss to the Cavaliers. We find it reasonable to conclude he hasn’t changed over the years — the players around him aren’t playing at an elite level anymore to make any of these antics worthwhile.

The latest suspension will likely be lengthy. So it’s bound to get ugly before it gets better with the Warriors, and they best get proactive in solving the problem before Curry solves it for them and asks out.

• Related | Amico: End of Green, Thompson eras may be near for Warriors