The Golden State Warriors have re-signed restricted free agent forward Draymond Green to a multi-year contract, the team announced today. Per team policy, terms of the agreement were not announced.
“You cannot overstate how important Draymond Green was to helping our team win an NBA Championship last season,” said General Manager Bob Myers, “and we are thrilled that he has decided to re-sign with us. Our ownership group, led by Joe Lacob and Peter Guber, has once again demonstrated the commitment necessary to build and maintain a championship caliber team.”
Green, 25, appeared in 79 regular-season games (all starts) last season, establishing career-high averages in nearly every major statistical category, including 11.7 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.56 steals, 1.25 blocks and 31.5 minutes per contest. The 6’7” forward led the team in rebounding, ranked second in assists, steals and blocks, and ranked third in scoring. Green became just the third player in Warriors history to earn NBA All-Defensive First Team honors (joining Nate Thurmond and Andre Iguodala), and also finished second in both the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year and Most Improved Player Award voting. Among NBA leaders, the Michigan State product ranked second in plus/minus (+10.6), third in net rating (16.5) and tied for fourth in defensive rating (96.0).
In 21 postseason games en route to the Warriors first NBA title in 40 years, Green averaged 13.7 points, 10.1 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.81 steals, 1.19 blocks and 37.3 minutes per contest. He posted 12 double-doubles during the postseason, including a triple-double with 16 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in the series-clinching victory in Game 6 of the NBA Finals at Cleveland, marking the first Finals triple-double in franchise history.
“This is truly an unbelievable and blessed day for me and my family,” said Green. “I’d like to thank Joe Lacob, Peter Guber, Bob Myers, Rick Welts, all of my teammates and coaches, and everyone in DubNation for believing in me and helping me become the player and person that I am today. In three short years I have gone from a second round pick that many doubted could play in this league to an NBA Champion, and I look forward to getting better – both individually and as a team – as we face the challenges that lie ahead of us.”
Originally selected by the Warriors with the 35th overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, Green has appeared in 240 regular-season games (92 starts) during his three-year career, averaging 6.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.11 steals in 22.3 minutes per contest. Having made the playoffs in all three of his professional campaigns, the Saginaw, MI, native has already appeared in 40 postseason games (26 starts) with Golden State, averaging 11.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 1.40 steals and 1.18 blocks per contest. Among franchise postseason leaders, Green currently ranks third in steals (56), fourth in blocks (47), fourth in three-pointer field goals (41), eighth in assists (148) and ninth in rebounds (321).