The 2024-25 season has not unfolded as the Golden State Warriors envisioned. Entering the campaign with championship aspirations, the team now finds itself in a challenging position midway through the season in the competitive Western Conference. Amid these struggles, a former NBA champion weighed in on the state of the Warriors, suggesting it might be time for Draymond Green to follow Klay Thompson’s lead and leave the team.
“It’s time to just break the Warriors up; it ran its course,” Jeff Teague said during the Club 520 Podcast. “It started with Klay, once Klay left. Now it’s time to move on from Draymond,” he added. The former guard, who won an NBA title with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021, believes Golden State’s once-dominant core may no longer have what it takes to compete at the highest level.
Teague pointed to Draymond Green’s age and years of service with the Warriors as reasons for moving on from the veteran. “I love Dray, but they’ve got to load up, they’ve got to go young,” Teague said. “They’re not about to win anything. It’s over with.”
At 34 years old and in his 13th NBA season, Green has been a cornerstone of the Warriors since his debut in 2012. However, Teague suggests the team’s best path forward may be to prioritize youth and rebuild for the future.
Is there another option for Draymond Green?
While Jeff Teague advocates for a youth movement, he also suggested an alternative to trading Green: making a big splash by acquiring another superstar. “Unless they are about to make some big trade and get another superstar or something… If they can’t do that, they might as well go young,” he explained.
If the Warriors choose to overhaul their roster and focus on the future, it could leave veterans like Green and Stephen Curry at a crossroads. They’d need to decide whether to stay during a rebuild with low title expectations or leave to pursue another championship.
“Ask Steph if he wants to be part of the rebuild, because you’re a legend. You can even ask Draymond. ‘Do y’all want to be a part of this rebuild? We’re going to go young,’” Teague suggested. “I’m sure Draymond is going to say ‘I want to go compete’ and he can go wherever, the Lakers, or wherever, but right now it ain’t looking good.”
Warriors’ current struggles
The Golden State Warriors are facing a tough stretch in the 2024-25 season, continuing their struggles from last year when they missed the Playoffs. Currently sitting in ninth place in the Western Conference with an 18-18 record, the team has dropped six of its last nine games, raising alarms about their ability to contend for a postseason spot.
Their recent loss at Chase Center to the Miami Heat, who played without star Jimmy Butler, has only amplified the criticism surrounding the team’s performance. Even franchise cornerstone Stephen Curry and head coach Steve Kerr have voiced concerns about the Warriors’ current level of play. The inconsistency and lackluster results have left fans and analysts questioning the team’s trajectory.
Despite these challenges, there is still hope for the Warriors. With nearly half the season left to play, they have time to make adjustments and potentially turn things around. However, the team will need significant improvement, both offensively and defensively, to climb back into contention in the tightly contested Western Conference.