With Kristaps Porzingis making his debut for the Golden State Warriors after being acquired at the Feb. 5 trade deadline, there were also talks of them being involved in the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes with the Milwaukee Bucks. As the Warriors are looking to make moves that could propel them back to the top, a pursuit of Antetokounmpo was inevitable, though owner Joe Lacob pushes back on reports on what was offered.
According to reports from ClutchPoints' NBA insider Brett Siegel and ESPN's Golden State beat reporter Anthony Slater, star Draymond Green had been involved in talks for Antetokounmpo. However, general manager Mike Dunleavy would say that Green was never offered, with Lacob doubling down on that assumption, saying “he was never discussed in a trade.”
“Mike was 100% correct what he said,” Lacob said, via The San Francisco Standard. “But the truth is, the way these things are, you don’t just easily banter around names unless you’re getting serious. We never really got engagement on some of the big deals to the point where you get into specific names. People can look at the roster, and they can make assumptions about who might or might not have to go if you’ve got a certain person.”
Warriors' Joe Lacob expresses how Draymond Green was not ‘shopped'
While the Warriors are hoping for a deep playoff push, there's no doubt that the team is at a disadvantage with Jimmy Butler suffering a season-ending injury earlier and Stephen Curry's continued absence. Green has been a crucial piece in Golden State's dynasty for many seasons, but the reporting had been that his name had been mentioned due to his salary making sense in a potential deal, but Lacob would express how “he was never shopped in any way.”
“He’s a core person in our franchise. You don’t trade a Draymond Green simply or easily,” Lacob said. “You do it if you have to, and you’re getting tremendous value, and you’re improving your team. Even Draymond has said he understands that. You have to look at these things. But his name was never specifically discussed with another team. And that’s the truth.”
At any rate, it remains to be seen if the Warriors continue the Antetokounmpo pursuit in the offseason and if Green will be involved then.
