The Golden State Warriors are still basking in their championship victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers, but as free agency draws closer, the focus is beginning to shift.
Warriors big man Draymond Green is scheduled to hit the open market as a restricted free agent and his stock has never been higher after finishing second in Defensive Player of the Year voting and setting career highs in nearly every statistical category. Is there a chance the Warriors lose him to another suitor?
Even Green admitted that there are "a lot of people talking to him" about signing with the Detroit Piston (he grew up in Michigan). However, he also noticed that Golden State has created a "huge fan base" in his hometown and that counts for something as well.
Green is expected to draw interest from Golden State, Detroit, the Houston Rockets and Atlanta Hawks once free agency opens on Wednesday. Green, 25, told Yahoo Sports that he would do his due diligence when the time comes.
"The one thing I've been taught is to go into this thing with no expectations," Green said. "When you do, that's when it gets frustrating. That's when it gets stressful. I just want to have fun and enjoy this process.
"So I'm not going in there with no expectations for this or expectations for that. That would take away the enjoyment. And that's what I want, I want to enjoy this."
In three years, Green has made a total of $2.6 million as a former second-round pick. Now, he is expected to sign a deal that approaches max money. The looming pay raise is an exciting goal for Green and his agent B.J. Armstrong.
"When [Armstrong] talks I just start laughing at him," Green said. "To hear my name mentioned like that [financially], to hear that type of stuff, it brings me back to moments like when I grew up in Saginaw, Michigan where my mom made about $14,000-$15,000 per year. It's surreal. It's like a joke and I can't believe it.
"At some point I will believe it. But it's like, 'Wow.' Who would have imagined this? You have these big goals. You hope this and hope that. You want to believe it, but it seems so far-fetched. To be in this moment, this position, it's like, 'Wow.'"
As a restricted free agent, the Warriors have the right to match any offer Green receives on the open market. Golden State already has $56.7 million committed to salaries in the 2015-16 season, but Green remains a top priority.
"They said they wanted to keep me, but we will see what happens," Green said. "I don't know. I am not getting no pressure. There are no reports [of management] flying around right now [to see me]. There is really no need to feel pressure. Ain't nothing going on right now other than LeBron James and Kevin Love opted out."
