Draymond Green officially declined his player option with the Golden State Warriors earlier in June. While Green is likely to return to the Warriors, his decision means that other teams are able to approach him as well.
Furthermore, there should be a healthy market for the veteran. Green is an elite defender who could easily bolster the championship hopes of several title contenders. While there are some attitude issues that could cause hesitation in pursuing Green, his play is more than other the occasional on-court issue.
However, ESPN's Brian Windhorst suggested a particularly wild place for Green to sign with - the Sacramento Kings. While the Kings launched themselves into the Western Conference conversation last season, Green's recent history with the team makes it an unusual pairing, to say the least.
Draymond Green To The Kings?
Windhorst pointed to the Kings' draft day moves as signs they were chasing a big signing. During the draft, Sacramento sent Richaun Holmes and 24th overall draft pick Olivier Maxence-Prosper for a return to be announced later. The move allowed the Kings to create some much-needed cap space for a major signing.
“The Kings can now go hunting for Draymond Green if they wish,” Windhorst said on ESPN's draft coverage show.“And that would be extraordinarily interesting because it is the exact, the exact, type of player they need…" As mentioned, Green is an elite defender, one of the best in the NBA.
However, catching himself, Windhorst went on to explain why the trade would be interesting. "You know, it would be interesting with Sabonis. That would be an interesting first practice.” Famously, Green earned himself a suspension during the Warriors' playoff series against the Kings for stomping on Domantas Sabonis. Those would definitely be negotiations you would pay to be in the room for.
Related: 2023 NBA Draft recap
Brian Windhorst Is Having A Wild Take Week
However, Green to the Kings isn't the only wild thing Windhorst has said this week. Speaking before the draft on First Take, Windhorst said that Victor Wembanyama's skill set is ahead of LeBron's at the same age. Wembanyama went first overall to the Spurs, as expected.
However, just how wild of a take is it? On the one hand, Wembanyama is a lean 7"2 who is going to struggle against more physical defenders. Furthermore, he's never played in the American system of basketball, be it the NBA, G League, or another development league. While he's been playing professionally since 2019, it's on a much more relaxed schedule against "inferior" competition to what he will face in the NBA.
Despite this, Wembanyana is unlike any prospect the NBA has ever seen. His skill set is so unique that LeBron went as far as to call him an "alien". Furthermore, he has spent the last four years focused purely on basketball, playing professionally in a well-regarded European league. Regardless, the debate also to whether he is worth the hype will be answered when he debuts in the summer league in a few months.