Golden State's Superteam Plans Just Hit a $10 Million Draymond Green Problem Nobody Is Ready For

Alright, so you saw the news, right? Kristaps Porzingis, the big man, just inked a two-year, $40 million extension with the Golden State Warriors, Shams Charania over at ESPN dropped that bomb on Monday. And listen, with a player option for the second season and his 2026-27 salary looking like it's at least $19 million, this move just threw a HUGE wrench into what everyone thought the Warriors were cooking up. We're talking about their reported master plan to trade for Anthony Davis and then somehow convince LeBron James to come play for them on a $15 million non-taxpayer mid-level exception. Yeah, Porzingis's new deal? It just made all that a whole lot tighter.

The Warriors' Cap Sheet Just Got a Whole Lot Messier

Let's break down why this Porzingis extension is such a headache for Golden State. If they pull off this wild dream of bringing in LeBron and AD, their cap sheet for just ten players would be absolutely stacked. You've got Stephen Curry at a whopping $62.6 million, Anthony Davis at $58.5 million, Porzingis now at $19 million, and LeBron James at $15 million. Then add in Moses Moody at $12.5 million, Al Horford at $6.8 million, Yaxel Lendeborg at $6.1 million, Brandin Podziemski at $5.7 million, Gui Santos at $4.6 million, and Will Richard at $2.2 million. You add all that up and you're staring down about $193 million in salaries.

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Here's the kicker: once they use that non-taxpayer mid-level exception for LeBron, the Warriors are hard-capped at the $209 million first apron. That means they'd only have roughly $16 million left to sign four more players. And guess what? One of those spots HAS to be Draymond Green.

Draymond Green's Stunning Dilemma

Now, this is where it gets really spicy. Draymond Green, the heart and soul of that Warriors defense, declined his $27.7 million player option on Monday. The assumption is he did that to take a pay cut and help the team make these big moves. But here's the cold, hard truth: for the Warriors to execute this LeBron-AD-Porzingis plan without dumping ANY other players, Draymond would have to take a pay cut to under $10 million. Under TEN MILLION! Seriously? That would be absolutely stunning for a player of his caliber and importance. It's an insane ask, even for Draymond, and it shows just how little wiggle room the Warriors left themselves with this Porzingis deal.

Is There Even a Path Forward for the Golden State Superteam?

Look, if the Warriors were 100% convinced they were landing LeBron and AD, they absolutely should have waited on Porzingis, or even let him walk. But they didn't, and now they're in a bind. Is it still possible? Yeah, maybe. NBA salary cap analyst Yossi Gozlan threw out a projection on X that gives them a sliver of hope. His idea? Dump Moses Moody's $12.5 million contract into another team's cap space. If they do that, it frees up enough cash to give Draymond Green a more reasonable $19 million for the 2026-27 season and then fill out the rest of the roster with veteran minimum deals. But even that comes with a question mark, right? Moody is only 24, but he's going to be out for most of the 2026-27 season, though he is under contract for 2027-28. It's a complicated mess, for sure.

So, the question is, can Golden State navigate this cap nightmare? Are they actually going to ask Draymond to take a pay cut that low, or can they find a taker for Moody? The league is definitely watching to see how this all shakes out, and whether this superteam dream in the Bay Area ever actually becomes a reality. This offseason just got way more interesting.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.